December 2023 NPL Board Report by Nashville Public Library

NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY Board of Trustees Meeting December 12, 2023

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Agenda December 12, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37219 12:00 noon Call to Order / Roll Call

II.

Metro Ordinance required to be announced at all Board Meetings – Chair, Joyce Searcy

III. IV.

a. “Pursuant to the provisions of § 2.68.030 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws, please take notice that decisions of the Nashville Public Library Board may be appealed to the Chancery Court of Davidson County for review under a common law writ of certiorari. Any appeal must be filed within sixty days after entry of a final decision by the Board. Any person or other entity considering an appeal should consult with an attorney to ensure that time and procedural requirements are met.” Public Comments Board Chair Comments, Joyce Searcy

Approval of Minutes: October 30, 2023; October 31, 2023; and November 16, 2023

VI.

Interim Library Director Report, Terri Luke

VII.

Foundation Report, Shawn Bakker

VIII.

New Business a. Updated Collection Development Policy for Limitless Libraries, Linda Harrison b. Your Mind Matters, Linda Harrison

IX.

Adjournment Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting January 16, 2024 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37219 12:00 noon

Meeting Minutes – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Special Called Meeting Agenda October 30, 2023 Main Library Auditorium 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37211 10:00AM

Members Present:

Joyce Searcy, Nadine De La Rosa, Keith Simmons, Charvis Rand, Kate Ezell, and Katy Varney

Library Staff:

(Staff members were invited to attend both in-person and virtually)

Others:

Derrick Smith, Assistant Metropolitan Attorney at Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Karen Miller, Bradbury Miller Associates

Call to Order / Roll Call a. Ms. Joyce Searcy called the meeting to order at 10:15 AM.

II.

Metro Ordinance required to be announced at all Board Meetings – Chair, Joyce Searcy a. “Pursuant to the provisions of § 2.68.030 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws, please take notice that decisions of the Nashville Public Library Board may be appealed to the Chancery Court of Davidson County for review under a common law writ of certiorari. Any appeal must be filed within sixty days after entry of a final decision by the Board. Any person or other entity considering an appeal should consult with an attorney to ensure that time and procedural requirements are met.”

III.

Public Comments a. There were no public comment requests for this meeting.

IV.

New Business a. Discussion, deliberation, and decisions regarding process for employing a Library Director. i. Ms. Searcy introduced Ms. Karen Miller from Bradbury Miller Associates, who stated the rubrics presented were based specifically on the feedback received from the surveys sent to community members and staff earlier in the search process. ii. Mr. Charvis Rand asked to have a discussion regarding what all members of The Library Board were looking for in the next director. Mr. Rand stated he was

looking for an initiator, a facilitator, a collaborator, a motivator, an educator, and an innovator. Ms. Kate Ezell stated the library needs someone who has experience working within a library system similar to NPL, as well as someone with a vision and understanding of the city of Nashville. Ms. Nadine De La Rosa stated she would like to see a director who can make informed decisions based on what is happening in the city and the constituents that work within the system, as well as someone with the ability to see what the staff and city truly need. Furthermore, Ms. De La Rosa stated stabilizing a transitioning social culture and valuing the social network within the changing structure of Nashville matters the most to her. Mr. Keith Simmons stated he agreed with Ms. Lisa Bubert’s statement from the September 19th Board Meeting regarding what staff would like to see in a new director. Mr. Simmons continued that the new director would need to be someone who is willing to be more visible in the branches and the surrounding communities, and who could communicate a clear vision for the library. Ms. Searcy stated she would like to see a director who creates more opportunities for systemic change and growth opportunities for staff, whether that be through wages or career pathways. Ms. Searcy suggested a reorganization of staff may be required in order to keep library staff motivated towards growth in the workplace. iii. Ms. Ezell recommended asking the applicants their opinions on what NPL could do better based on their previous experience in the library field. Ms. De La Rosa suggested asking what the role of the public library was in the 21st Century. Ms. Miller interjected that the presentation question for that afternoon was very similar to the question Ms. De La Rosa suggested. Ms. De La Rosa stated her question focused more on what they believe the role and value of the library system is, rather than their action plan for the library system. iv. Mr. Rand stated every candidate should be asked the same questions first, and then follow up questions should be asked based on their answers, and suggested those additional questions not be counted in the grading system. Mr. Rand explained that follow up questions would be curated towards specific candidates based on their answers and experience, and because each candidate may not receive the same follow up questions, it would not be fair to have those questions count towards their score. Ms. Katy Varney stated there was no rubric document being used by The Library Board to assess their decision-making. Ms. Ezell suggested reviewing the questions further. v. Ms. Searcy listed the pre-existing questions. Ms. Varney stated that many of the answers to the questions had been answered in their resumes and questionnaires given to The Library Board. Ms. Miller clarified that her team built the questions based on the rubric provided to The Library Board. Ms. Miller ensured The Library Board that they would have the rubric before the end of the day if they had not received said document.

vi. Ms. Ezell asked if The Library Board could commence meeting prior to 9 AM on the morning of the 31st. Mr. Derrick Smith stated because the special called public meeting was announced to begin at 9 AM, The Library Board could not commence meeting prior to 9 AM. The Library Board members agreed to meet at 9 AM, instead of 9:30 AM. vii. Ms. Ezell suggested asking what the candidates might do differently at NPL compared to their previous experience. Ms. Searcy recommended integrating Ms. Ezell’s suggestion into the question “What is your evidence of your demonstrated leadership at a library system?”. viii. Mr. Simmons believed many of the interview questions were not specific enough and suggested The Library Board come up with additional questions that were more pointed and harder to finesse an answer to. ix. Ms. Searcy suggested amending the question “[…] How do you keep everyone moving in the same direction and embrace the library’s overall vision?” by replacing the word “moving” with the word “growing.” x. Ms. Ezell recommending the following questions: “We are looking for a visionary leader for our library system who’ll keep us best in class. What work is NPL not doing yet, and what should be on our minds and in our plans. We’ve looked at NPL’s operations. What should and can we do better than we are now?” xi. Ms. Searcy recommended asking for examples of the question “Could you please explain how you balance being accessible to staff?”. xii. The Library Board discussed changing the order in which the questions should be asked. xiii. Mr. Simmons suggested The Library Board be cognizant of time when asking questions. Ms. Varney responded that follow up questions would also be important to ask to get to know each candidate better. xiv. Mr. Simmons made a motion to recess. Mr. Rand seconded. The Library Board agreed to resume at 12:30 PM. The motion passed unanimously. b. Ms. Searcy reconvened the meeting at 12:37 PM and thanked the Bradbury Miller Advisory Committee members who contributed to the library search. i. Ms. Miller introduced herself to the library staff and patrons in attendance. Ms. Miller stated the topic of discussion for the presentations was for each candidate to describe their visions for the Nashville Public Library in the next 3-5 years. c. Presentation/ Question and Answer, Linda Harrison i. Ms. Miller introduced Ms. Linda Harrison.

ii.

Ms. Harrison worked as a librarian at the Clark County Library System and the North Las Vegas Library System. Ms. Harrison shared that she was a recipient of several awards and had a 24-year history within the Nashville Public Library system. Ms. Harrison explained that she was currently the Assistant Director of Education and Literacy at NPL and managed several departments and programs within the Education and Literacy division. Ms. Harrison stated only 39% of Davidson County residents had library cards at the end of the 2022 Fiscal Year, and stated that increased outreach, marketing, and financial support were required to improve NPL’s status. Ms. Harrison provided a four-prong approach to expanding NPL by addressing early literacy, the unhoused population, mental health programming, and DEI in workplace culture. Ms. Harrison shared her vision of creating an early literacy center powered by already existing programming such as Bringing Books to Life and Studio NPL, utilizing existing Carnegie libraries as hubs for unhoused populations to receive resources, and expanding the Your Mind Matters mental health initiative throughout the NPL system. Ms. Harrison shared that improving DEI meant seeing the humanness in one another, and stated she was committed to serving people no matter who walked through the library doors. Ms. Harrison hoped to have all NPL staff trained in DEI by 2026-2027 and planned to implement a DEI division under NPL’s HR department.

iii. The following questions were asked of Ms. Harrison: “What area of DEI do you need most improvement in and how do you plan to improve?” Ms. Harrison stated that there had to be a statement made from the core admin leadership team to lead as example for the rest of the library staff, and DEI had to be made a priority, which would create a sense of cohesiveness. “How do you plan on being a data informed director?” Ms. Harrison stated that staying updated with well-informed members of staff would be paramount and relying on those more informed in order to keep learning and growing herself. “When it comes to East Branch, what would happen to the existing programming? How would you tie in the no-binary unhoused people into the unhoused resource centers?” Ms. Harrison planned on involving the Metro Homeless Commission to get the best expertise on how to manage and include all unhoused people. Ms. Harrison clarified that this was just an idea, and acknowledged it was not completely fleshed out yet and would require input from several experts. “What experience do you have with unions? How would you work closely with union members?”

Ms. Harrison stated she came from a family of unionists, and she was committed to making sure the union members felt safe and supported. Ms. Harrison added that it was important to fight for better wages, and she encouraged having an open door for the stewards of the union to keep collaboration and open-mindedness necessary. Ms. Harrison stated that if the leadership did not prioritize employee needs then the leadership team failed staff completely. “What is your language equity plan for patrons who do not speak English?” Ms. Harrison stated that she had already been looking at ways to meet the needs of various ESL patrons, and suggested making sure the foreign language collections were expanded and prioritizing hiring more staff members who speak different languages. d. Presentation/ Question and Answer, Jason Kuhl i. Ms. Miller introduced Mr. Jason Kuhl. ii. Mr. Kuhl started working in libraries when he was 19 years old and had worked at Normal Public Library and St. Louis Public Library. Mr. Kuhl was currently the CEO of St. Charles City County Library outside of St. Louis. Mr. Kuhl stated in the next 3-5 years he would like to see more efforts towards adjusting from a pandemic, promoting freedom to read, assisting those who could not obtain affordable housing, and making strides to close the gap between digital divide and how different populations get access to information. Mr. Kuhl stated that public libraries had to be places to gather, learn, and create, and be inspired. iii. The following questions were asked of Mr. Kuhl: “How will you clearly, regularly, and transparently communicate with all staff?” Mr. Kuhl stated he had previously sent weekly update emails to keep connected and engaged with staff. He also mentioned he created a program called “Donuts with the Director” for himself and frontline staff to be better acquainted and connected. “Could you explain your rationale before making a big financial decision?” Mr. Kuhl understood that libraries did not have unlimited resources, and he believed in prioritizing financial decisions based on planning and necessity to determine where funds should be allocated. “What has been your experience and response to censorship campaigns?” Mr. Kuhl stated in Missouri there were more and more legislations targeting censorship in schools and libraries, and he addressed this by pushing educational efforts in his library system so that patrons understood the importance of fighting for their own intellectual freedoms. “How would you approach trying to attain livable wages for library staff?”

Mr. Kuhl stated the first approach would be using market data to back up the effort, as well as demonstrating the value to those who donate to the library so that they understand the importance. “How do you challenge your own data-based assumptions?” Mr. Kuhl stated the importance of not just relying on data alone, and that anecdotal and data-based evidence was more powerful together than separate. “Talk to us about your union experience and how you would work with your union here.” Mr. Kuhl stated he had never worked in a library that had an active union, but he believed in unions being a necessary part of the library and looked forward to hopefully working closely with one in the future. e. Presentation/ Question and Answer, Chad Helton i. Ms. Miller introduced Mr. Chad Helton. ii. Mr. Helton shared that he had been a library leader for many years after not having very many opportunities and dropping out of school. Mr. Helton stated that education was the great equalizer, and in the next 3-5 years he planned to push education at the library, all the while continuing what the library had already done in Nashville. Mr. Helton envisioned creating a library in juvenile hall to encourage turning young lives around for the better and stated that developing new strategies and a Youth Library Board would be very beneficial. Mr. Helton planned on having a monthly community office hour for community members to conduct town hall style talks with the director. Mr. Helton also shared that he created programming for unhoused people during his time in Los Angeles and looked forward to contributing similar programming in Nashville. Mr. Helton also shared the importance of intellectual freedom and civics education opportunities at the library as well so that patrons understood their rights and the ways in which their local governments worked. iii. Mr. Helton was asked the following questions: “What statistics are important to you to convey success and failure?” Mr. Helton stated that knowing how many patrons were physically coming into the space was important to him, and knowing who is coming predetermines how to make them feel included. “How will you know if an idea is working? How will you measure impact with data?” Mr. Helton stated that the ideas presented were just his thoughts, but he believed that the community should be involved in deciding if an idea is good and has

impact. Mr. Helton continued that the community at large should be used to gauge success. “Could you elaborate on why you left your last job?” Mr. Helton shared that he started his position as director at Hennepin County Library during Covid and there was a mandate announced that no one in higher administrative positions would have a physical office and the positions transitioned to being remote full-time. Mr. Helton had requested to continue his work while living in Los Angeles, due to a condition he developed that caused eye blindness and that required he undergo surgery. Mr. Helton stated this move was approved by his superiors, but while he was living in Los Angeles, the policy regarding remote work changed and was no longer allowed. Mr. Helton stated he was still due to have five more surgeries while living in Los Angeles, and he informed his superiors that he would be stepping down from the position in compliance with the change in policy. “How would you break staff members out of old habits?” Mr. Helton expressed the importance of understanding that things change and to move forward progression is necessary, and using the current way of doing things as a steppingstone and foundation was key to easing staff and patrons into a accepting a new vision. “How do you fight censorship in a place like Tennessee?” Mr. Helton said fighting censorship required refusal to buckle under pressure, and that libraries were marketplaces of ideas. “Talk a little bit about your union experience and background.” Mr. Helton stated he had worked with unions since 2011 at the University of California, Davis, where he was the head negotiator in Los Angeles for a librarian’s guild. Mr. Helton was not involved in the Hennepin County library union, due to his position not being allowed to participate in union activity. “How would you plan to communicate and engage with the union?” Mr. Helton stated he would like to have open and official channels of communications with union members, rather than back-channel communication, which led to empty promises. Mr. Helton stated having honest conversations where union members and himself kept each other accountable was paramount. f. Presentation/ Question and Answer, Roberta Phillips i. Ms. Miller introduced Ms. Roberta Phillips. ii. Ms. Phillips shared that she started her library career as a school librarian and classroom teacher before becoming a public librarian. Ms. Phillips opened

ImaginOn, a flagship library and theatre, and won the Library Journal Mover and Shaker Award. Ms. Phillips was previously a director of planning and projects, and the CEO of the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, where her focuses were on literacy, inclusion, personal achievement, health and wellness, and creativity. Ms. Phillips stated she was very passionate about inclusion and antiracism and created a DEI team that created benchmarks for her library staff. Ms. Phillips planned to implement new framework for the library that addressed community needs. Ms. Phillips stated her vision was to foster the conditions for social impact by increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion. Ms. Phillips stated rather than tracking numbers of patrons, tracking impact from programming should be more important. Ms. Phillips emphasized the importance of four points: People, Places, Pathways, and Partners. Ms. Phillips believed it was her job to eliminate barriers for staff and advocate for more resources to benefit branches that need additional care. Ms. Phillips shared her plan to implement a human-centered service design, used to gauge what patrons were thinking, feeling, and doing in the library. iii. Ms. Phillips was asked the following questions: “Some staff can work from home, but others cannot. How would you increase flexibility in work-life balance?” Ms. Phillips stated she would encourage remote workplace locations and stated the need to distinguish what needed to be done in office versus at home. “What would you do to make sure staff could communicate on all levels?” Ms. Phillips stated transparency is important and she had in the past allowed staff to come to her office any time without notice. Ms. Phillips created a monthly staff meeting where staff could address issues, and she believed in staff engagement days where bonding was encouraged. “Would you expound on your reasoning for leaving the last position?” Ms. Phillips stated there were a lot of union MOUs that affected her life-work balance, and she decided to take a sabbatical and started working with other organizations to renew her passions. “In what ways would you improve DEI?” Ms. Phillips stated she involved the Office of Human Rights in the process of coming up with benchmarks that were in tandem with the library’s strategic goals, and there was a required internal audit in place to make sure this work was being upheld. Ms. Phillips stated that DEI was ongoing work, and being bold in her stance was necessary. “How do you navigate government boundaries in order to see results?”

Ms. Phillips stated it was important to lobby and know the movers and shakers in your state, as well as develop good relationships with the state library. Ms. Phillips stated partnerships within government helped move things forward. “How would you support BIPOC, Queer, and disabled patrons in Nashville’s library system?” Ms. Phillips stated education, civic engagement, and being able to agree to disagree was important. “What is your language equity plan?” Ms. Phillips stated signage and way finding, as well as having staff who speak multiple languages, building collection diversity, utilizing AI, and creating a mindset that includes other language speakers. “Could you share a bit about your union experience?” Ms. Phillips stated she worked very hard to make sure staff felt safe and valued and met bi-weekly with union shop stewards to keep informed. g. Ms. Miller and Ms. Searcy thanked all staff and patrons present— in-person and through live stream— for attending the presentations. V.

Adjournment a. The meeting was adjourned at 3:16 PM. Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting Special Called Meeting October 31, 2023 Midtown Hills Police Precinct 1441 12th Avenue South Nashville, TN 37203 9:00AM

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Special Called Meeting Agenda October 31, 2023 Midtown Hills Police Precinct 1441 12th Avenue South Nashville, TN 37203 9:00AM Members Present:

Joyce Searcy, Katy Varney, Kate Ezell, Charvis Rand, Nadine De La Rosa, Keith Simmons

Library Staff:

Terri Luke, Susan Drye, Lee Boulie, Andrea Fanta, Sherry Adams, Emily Krieble, Hannah Gerst, Larry Jirik, Forrest Eagle, Kate Wingate, Kyle Cook, Jude Romines, Angela Brady, Lisa Bubert, Eric Lowy, Carlos Shivers, Niq Tognoni, Anna Harutyunyan, Katie Sue Buchholtz, Katy Searcy, James Staub, Corey Frederick

Others:

Derrick Smith, Assistant Metropolitan Attorney at Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County; Razel Jones, Workforce Diversity Manager at Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County; Shawn Bakker, President of the Nashville Public Library Foundation; Karen Miller, Beth Barker, Beverly Townsend, Roderick Townsend, Ronette Adams-Taylor, Scott Harrison

Call to Order / Roll Call – 9:09 A.M.

II.

III.

New Business a. Interview Preparation Review, Karen Miller i. Ms. Searcy was pleased with the progress the group made yesterday in selecting interview questions. The group began to discuss changes to the questions. The police precinct agreed to print off copies for the board members once the questions were finalized.

ii. Ms. De la Rosa explained that she had spent the evening working on the questions to assess each candidates’ character. She read out several of the questions which included “Tell us about a challenge that you faced in your professional career,” “Tell us about a time you made a mistake,” “Tell us about a time you had to adjust your communication style to manage a large team,” and “What challenges do you anticipate in this role?” iii. Mr. Simmons liked these questions but expressed concerns about staying within the allotted 45-minute timeframe. Ms. Miller advised the board to take an adequate amount of time for each candidate, as some candidates will take longer than others to answer. Ms. Searcy requested that Ms. Miller serve as a timekeeper during the interviews to make sure they stayed on schedule. iv. Mr. Jones asked the board to try and keep the process as equitable as possible. Follow up questions are permitted during the process, but members should avoid deviations unless the conversation can organically deviate with each candidate in the same fashion. v. The Board agreed to include the four questions from Ms. De la Rosa and to keep the question regarding security guards. Ms. Searcy asked if they should include a question about working with city council, and Mr. Simmons, Ms. De la Rosa, and Mr. Rand agreed. Mr. Rand asked if the security guard question should be about general security. Mr. Simmons agreed, but stated he wanted the candidates to talk about security guards. vi. The Board continued to discuss the questions, eliminating several of the questions they had previously agreed on yesterday as candidates were able to answer several of them during the presentations. They narrowed the list down to 8 strong questions and 1 question they were unsure if they wanted to include as it talked about 21st century libraries. Ms. Varney stated that the mix of questions was good. There were four questions about character and four about the library. The uncertain question acted as a bridge between the two groups. Ms. Searcy suggested combining the question about NPL operational improvements with the question about 21st century libraries. vii. Ms. Searcy read out the list of questions. The group wondered if DEI should be a separate question. Mr. Jones explained that many of the DEI questions were answered during the presentations and the initial interview rounds. He suggested adding the word “diverse” to the question about communication.

viii. Ms. Searcy finalized the list of questions, which were as follows: 1. Tell us about a challenging ethical dilemma you faced in your professional career. How did you resolve it? Who did you turn to for assistance? 2. Tell us about a time when you made a mistake or regretted your decision. How did you handle that? What was the outcome? 3. Tell us about when you had to adjust your communication style to manage a large diverse team and/or your constituents successfully. What did you do, and what was the result? 4. What challenges do you anticipate encountering in this role? How do you plan to navigate and manage the challenges? 5. Have you created and worked directly with a board or city council to get a budget modified or approved? What size budget and tell us what you did to achieve approval? 6. What is your current thinking about security guards in libraries & arms? On what facts do you base these thoughts? 7. There has been a rise in challenges to items in library collections and shelving policies, both nationwide and in Tennessee. How would you respond to material challenges, their placement in the library, and the library’s relationship to national organizations such as the ALA, etc? 8. As you consider NPL operations, what can be improved to ensure we are a cutting-edge 21st-century library? ix. Ms. Miller suggested the Board discuss who will ask what questions and how to introduce themselves. She recommended that each board member take a turn asking a question. The group agreed to the following order: Ms. De la Rosa, Mr. Rand, Ms. Searcy, Ms. Varney, Ms. Ezell, Mr. Simmons, Ms. Varney, and Ms. Searcy. Ms. Searcy also advised each member to introduce themselves at the start by saying their name and their title. x. The group took a break at 9:42 A.M.

b. Board Interview, Linda Harrison i. The session resumed at 9:56 A.M. and Ms. Harrison entered the room at 9:59 A.M. Ms. Searcy thanked Ms. Harrison for applying and welcomed her to the process.

She explained that the interview would take about 45 minutes and there would be time at the end for her to ask questions. The board introduced themselves. ii. Ms. De la Rosa asked the first question. Ms. Harrison explained a time when she was being asked to hire a friend of a friend for political reasons. After asking a mentor for help, she realized she should hire the best person for the job based on qualifications. iii. Mr. Rand asked the second question. Ms. Harrison highlighted her nurturing nature and talked about a time when she trusted an employee too much. The employee was caught stealing money and had to be fired. Ms. Harrison noted that if she had viewed the situation through a supervisory lens, she might have spotted something earlier. iv. Ms. Varney asked the third question. Ms. Harrison responded that her current team is large, and each direct report requires a different communication style. She adjusts her communication style according to what the employee needs. v. Ms. Searcy asked the fourth question. Ms. Harrison spoke about the past directors and how she would prioritize staff. vi. Ms. Ezell asked the fifth question. Ms. Harrison explained she had not been in the role of director before but has worked with city councils since leaving college. She noted that many of the questions asked by council should already be known and would like to offer more in-depth library tours for council members. vii. Mr. Simmons asked the sixth question. Ms. Harrison spoke about a recent meeting with Chief Drake earlier in the month to set up a mentoring program at the Bordeaux branch. She did not want to criminalize the branches and expressed a desire to keep the library a safe and welcoming space without armed guards. viii. Ms. Varney asked the seventh question. Ms. Harrison responded that she unequivocally stands for intellectual freedom. As a parent, she has gone through the process of assessing what was appropriate for her own child. She recently handled a patron with a complaint who wanted all the LGBTQ+ materials removed from the children’s area. She explained that parents should have the choice. ix. Ms. Searcy asked the eighth question. Ms. Harrison stated that NPL needs more staffing as there needs to be enough staff for both the branches and providing outreach. She also touched on AI and keeping our library sustainable. x. Ms. Searcy asked if the Board had any follow up questions. Ms. Varney asked if Ms. Harrison had any questions for the Board. Ms. Harrison asked Mr. Simmons

why he chose to be on the library board. Mr. Simmons spoke about how his legal work for the Foundation led to him chairing the NPLF Board and eventually moving to the library board. Having grown up in a house without books, he recalled wanting to go to the library on his family’s yearly trip into town and losing the nerve to come in. He stressed that he did not want anyone to be afraid to come to the library. xi. Ms. Harrison asked Ms. De la Rosa as the newest board member what area of the library she would like to see improved. Ms. De la Rosa explained she was taking the first year to observe, however, due to the transition, she has not yet seen a normal time at the library. She stated the most relevant need was for consistent leadership to provide grounding. xii. Ms. Harrison asked Ms. Searcy what the onboarding process would be for the director. Ms. Searcy stated she would need to discuss this with the Board to create a plan to integrate the new director into the library and the city. xiii. Ms. Varney asked Ms. Harrison if the meeting with Chief Drake was about security or a partnership. Ms. Harrison clarified that the meeting was to discuss a potential partnership with MNPD. xiv. Ms. Harrison thanked the board for the opportunity to interview. She compared the process to selecting the appropriate football quarterback during the Super Bowl to ensure a win and advocated for the Board to select her as she is dedicated to serving the library. xv. The Board took a break at 10:44 A.M. and reconvened at 10:52 A.M. The Board decided to eat lunch after Mr. Kuhl’s interview.

c. Board Interview, Jason Kuhl i. The session resumed at 10:52 A.M., and Mr. Kuhl joined the session at 10:57 A. M. ii. Ms. Searcy welcomed Mr. Kuhl and thanked him for his efforts thus far. Ms. Searcy also explained the process for the interview. The board then introduced themselves. iii. Ms. De la Rosa asked the first question. Mr. Kuhl spoke about the issue of intellectual freedom that he is currently facing at St. Charles City-County Public Library. The community’s conservative leadership has put pressure on the library to make collection changes and has passed a measure for library neutrality on political issues. Mr. Kuhl stated that the library is steadfast on the issue of intellectual freedom.

iv. Mr. Rand asked the second question. Mr. Kuhl spoke about a time when he submitted a program to be presented at the Public Library Association (PLA) Conference. The program’s title, which was meant to be humorous, was met with backlash from youth services staff. He explained his regret for not listening to others who asked him to rethink the title. He eventually pulled the program altogether from the conference and spoke with youth services staff individually, apologizing to each one. v. Ms. Varney asked the third question. Mr. Kuhl indicated that he tended to be relatively informal, stating that most staff respond positively to congenial relationships. However, he adjusts this approach to a more formal style when desired by staff. He provided an example of working with a team who prefer both types of relationships and how he adjusts them to be more formal when all parties are present. vi. Ms. Searcy asked the fourth question. Mr. Kuhl spoke about the Nashville community’s rapid growth and the need to see how growth affects library patrons. He would also lean on the library board for expertise and for connections within the community. Mr. Kuhl then commented on how NPL has received accolades but explained the need to understand the library’s staffing foundations, while relating it to his current position. He noted that his goal is to leave the public library he leads in a better position than its previous leader. vii. Ms. Ezell asked the fifth question. Mr. Kuhl talked about the differences in budgeting at Arlington Heights Public Library and St. Charles City-County Public Library, both of which he has served as director. He spoke about how he worked with the board at Arlington Heights to levy taxes to support the library and how he worked to balance the budget. viii. Ms. Ezell remarked that it sounded like Mr. Kuhl advocated for his library systems well. ix. Mr. Simmons asked the sixth question. Mr. Kuhl spoke about his experiences with many security incidents while serving as director at Arlington Heights. The library hired full unarmed security staff. At St. Charles City-County, the library had one armed off-duty police officer security at one location across from a school to help with children’s behavior issues. Eventually, the library adapted security to an unarmed security guard to accommodate actual needs. He noted that lethal arming of security can be problematic, but tasers may be justifiable. He stated the best

course of action would be to build relationships with police and assessing additional needs as they arise. x. Ms. Varney asked the seventh question. Mr. Kuhl iterated that PLA and the American Library Association (ALA) may not be aware of what some libraries are facing in terms of intellectual freedom. Responses in relation to collection policy and intellectual freedom need to be framed based on the challenge. He remarked that parents should be involved in what their children read. He finally noted that other approaches like relocating materials is censorship and may lead children to inappropriate materials. xi. Ms. Searcy asked the eighth question. Mr. Kuhl commented that Nashville Public Library is an incredible library and how it should continue to foster a spirit of innovation, even in the face of failure. He then mentioned that the Arlington Heights Public Library assessed and adapted services, while cutting some, to meet budgetary and staffing restrictions. xii. Ms. Searcy asked if the board had any follow-up questions. Ms. De la Rosa asked about the criteria to determine the use of armed and unarmed security. Mr. Kuhl spoke about the need to legally clear having armed security and if the addition of armed security would make staff as well as the public feel safer in library spaces. Ms. Ezell asked Mr. Kuhl to talk about his resignation from Arlington Heights. Mr. Kuhl commented how the elected board prioritized budgetary issues, bringing in Mr. Kuhl for this reason. When the board experienced heavy turnover, priorities changed, and he and another administrative staff member resigned. xiii. Mr. Kuhl asked the library board to speak about the library facilities plan and if is still relevant moving forward. Ms. Searcy explained how the library relies on capital funds from the city for new facilities and spoke about recent setbacks such as the pandemic. Ms. Ezell added that the city experienced a financial crisis and that there has been a renewed focus on obtaining funds through advocacy. Ms. Searcy commented about the construction of a new Donelson Branch. Mr. Simmons explained how 4% funds are used for collection development and capital expenses. He spoke about the need for additional funding to build a new Richland Park Branch. xiv. Mr. Kuhl asked about the new mayoral administration and its priorities in relation to the library. Ms. Searcy stated that all mayors have prioritized the library, and staff communicate well with the mayor and city council. Mr. Simmons agreed and added

that the lack of financial support from mayors correlated with steady tax rates. As taxes were increased, the library benefited. He commented that continued financial support may be based on the city’s needs as a growing city. Ms. Searcy noted that Mayor Freddie O’Connell met with all library director candidates. xv. Mr. Kuhl asked about the board’s expectations of the new director. Mr. Rand stated that the board is looking for an initiator, a facilitator, a collaborator, a motivator, an educator, and an innovator. He explained that the board is looking for someone to take the library to another level, to connect resources to opportunities, to make the library a transformational center. xvi. Mr. Kuhl asked what issues keep the board up at night. Ms. Searcy said that it depends on the day. Ms. Ezell commented that the board feels the interim director has been successful, but they are ready to have a director onboard. Ms. Varney highlighted the library’s biggest problem as its success. Elected officials place a lower priority on the library due to its successes. She stated that it is time for the library to focus internally on staff issues. xvii. Ms. Searcy thanked Mr. Kuhl for his time and Mr. Kuhl thanked the board. xviii. The board broke for lunch at 11:50 A.M.

d. Board Interview, Chad Helton i. The board continued the session at 12:35 P.M. and Chad Helton joined the group. ii. Ms. Searcy welcomed Mr. Helton and thanked him for his participation in the interview process. iii. The board introduced themselves, and Ms. Searcy explained the interview procedure. iv. Ms. De la Rosa asked the first question. Mr. Helton explained the circumstances in which he began serving as director of Hennepin County Public Library (HCPL) and referenced the death of George Floyd and the pandemic. Security had been removed from all library facilities upon the request of staff. Community members began to ask for security to be reinstated at the library. He ultimately decided to accommodate the community and brought security back to the library. He commented on how successful this decision was in the end after having conversations with staff and the community. Ms. De la Rosa asked about how the decision affected staff. Mr. Helton remarked that more people came back to the libraries as a result of adding security. Ms. Ezell asked about the role the library

board played in the decision. Mr. Helton stated that the library board, which serves in an advisory role only, did not have a role in making the decision. v. Mr. Rand asked the second question. Mr. Helton remarked that life is about mistakes because of challenging yourself. He explained a situation when fine notifications were sent directly to spam folders at the university where he previously worked. Because of the error, the dean of the library stated that the fines, which totaled to be around $3 million, should be waived. Mr. Helton indicated that he should have asked the dean to wait before waiving the fines. When the fines were waived, Mr. Helton received a call from the university’s president who explained that he should have gone through the proper channels before making a decision like that. He explained that there is typically a happy medium that leads to a correct decision. vi. Ms. Varney asked the third question. Mr. Helton spoke about difficulties faced during the pandemic. He was not able to meet face-to-face with individuals, but he was able to meet virtually with 430 out of 500 plus staff members. He also held weekly question and answer sessions, which would be attended by 200 – 300 staff members. He stated that his job was not more important than anyone else’s, it was just different. vii. Ms. Searcy asked the fourth question. Mr. Helton commented on the challenges with learning institutional culture, especially with city and state developments. He then spoke about upholding intellectual freedom, serving as library director as a black male, stewardship of information, and the library’s role in combating homelessness. viii. Ms. Ezell asked the fifth question. Mr. Helton referred to his work with Los Angeles Public Library’s (LAPL) budgeting process, mentioning his work with the governing board and the city council. The HCPL Board served as advisors in the budgeting process. He explained innovations used to reopen libraries that were not staffed. Additional maneuvering was used to receive outside funding from community organizations. Ms. Ezell asked about staff-less libraries. Mr. Helton commented that this idea came about during the pandemic and is still in use with two libraries in the Hennepin system. Ms. Searcy asked about theft at these libraries. Mr. Helton stated that theft has not been a concern at the staff-less library locations.

ix. Mr. Simmons asked the sixth question. Mr. Helton spoke of his experience with having armed guards and unarmed guards at LAPL, University of California Davis, and HCPL. Ms. Ezell asked if it was ever necessary for the guards to use their guns. Mr. Helton responded by saying that there was an incident where an individual had to be tased. This was the only incident over his three years at LAPL, a system with 72 branches. He stated that guns make some people feel uncomfortable but some children in certain areas of the city came to the library because it had armed security. He then commented on the necessity of proper training and the differences between law enforcement being used as guards versus contracted guards. Mr. Simmons asked if there was trained security at each LAPL location. Mr. Helton said that over 60 locations had security. Some branches did not have security because council members felt it was a deterrent to the public. Mr. Simmons asked frontline staff having to deal with public mental health issues. Mr. Helton spoke of his experience managing a homeless shelter and the need for proper training. At LAPL, he created a pilot program to bring social workers into the library to have conversations about mental health issues. Mr. Helton continued by explaining different trainings and programs at other libraries in his career. Ms. Ezell asked about how money was spent after all of these projects. Mr. Helton mentioned that LAPL had a dedicated safety and security budget of $14 million but it did not prioritize capital projects. x. Ms. Varney asked the seventh question. Mr. Helton voiced his strong support for intellectual freedom and that parents should determine what children read. As long as it is not hate speech, people have the right to speak freely and to access things freely. xi. Ms. Searcy asked the eighth question. Mr. Helton commented that NPL does lots of things other libraries do not. He stated that it should continue to take chances and be daring. The library should understand challenges and continue to remain nonpartisan. xii. Ms. Searcy asked if the board had any follow-up questions. Mr. Simmons asked about Mr. Helton’s doctoral work at Vanderbilt University. Mr. Helton noted that he is pursuing a doctorate in Education from Vanderbilt. Ms. De la Rosa commented that the program is three years in length, but it can take as long as needed. Mr. Helton said that his pursuit of education was inspired by a conversation with his grandmother. He continued by explaining the value in pursuing this particular

degree. Mr. Simmons commented on Mr. Helton’s academic background and asked why he would want to embark in another degree program. Mr. Helton stated that he saw this opportunity as something in which he wanted to participate. xiii. Mr. Helton asked the board about how NPL security is organized, security issues, and challenges. Mr. Simmons mentioned that NPL has four full-time security guards that spend most of their time at the Main Library. They visit branches when they have the opportunity. Contracted guards provide security at branches, and these guards tend to be undertrained. Ms. Varney stated that these guards are not armed, but arming guards has been an issue brought to the board. She expressed how challenging this topic has been. Mr. Helton related by saying that some are uncomfortable with weapons while others feel safer with armed guards. Mr. Simmons commented about his concern with security feeling safe. Ms. Searcy noted that security works closely with Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. xiv. Mr. Helton asked about the biggest immediate challenge that the new director will face. Ms. Ezell remarked that the immediate short-term challenge would be integrating into the library community and the community at large. In terms of a mid-term challenge, it would be to keep the library at its current level. The board would be intentional about integrating the new director into the community. Mr. Simmons explained the importance of the director being networked in the city’s political, social, and non-profit structures. Working with staff, addressing staff morale, and filling staffing vacancies would be the second most important task. Ms. Searcy spoke about recent challenges the city has faced and the work done by the interim director. Mr. Rand echoed Mr. Simmons’s comments about staff challenges. xv. Ms. Searcy thanked Mr. Helton for his time and Mr. Helton expressed his gratitude for the opportunity. xvi. The board took a break at 1:27 P.M.

e. Board Interview, Roberta Phillips i. The session was called back to order at 1:37 P.M. and Roberta Phillips joined the group at 1:38 P.M. ii. Ms. Searcy welcomed and thanked Ms. Phillips for her interest in the position. Ms. Searcy also explained the interview process. iii. The board introduced themselves.

iv. Ms. De la Rosa asked the first question. Ms. Phillips spoke of how staff at Prince George’s County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS) were suffering through the pandemic and murders of BIPOC community members. Since she did not have that lived experience, she asked the county’s officer for human rights to lead staff in a candid conversation about their feelings. Staff voiced their feelings, and it helped Ms. Phillips to see things the library needed to do to move forward. Staff showed their appreciation for this process. Ms. De la Rosa asked Ms. Phillips to clarify the “awakening” she felt. Ms. Phillips provided examples of systemic racism and commented that PGCMLS wanted to handle diversity, equity, and inclusion work in an inclusive, thoughtful way. v. Mr. Rand asked the second question. Ms. Phillips related the question to introducing the idea of a central library to PGCMLS. Leadership was blindsided by this idea and stated that it would need to go to the county’s Office of Economic Development first. vi. Ms. Varney asked the third question. Ms. Phillips spoke about an experience she had dealing with a patron upset about types of materials being purchased for the Orangeburg County Library (OCL). She had a conversation with the patron, trying to educate them on diversity within the county. Ms. Phillips emphasized the need to build relationships and knowing the library’s audience. vii. Ms. Searcy asked the fourth question. Ms. Phillips spoke about the need to have a strategic framework in place and assessing each location’s needs based on their community. All funding sources should be investigated, and the library should seek to build partnerships as well as find grants for additional funding. She called the board’s attention to her success in Maryland for working with the state for additional funding. viii. Ms. Ezell asked the fifth question. Ms. Phillips spoke about the budget process at OCL that included the library board and library leadership. About her experiences at PGCMLS, she commented on her collaboration with city and county governments to prioritize budget funding, winning the Women in Government Award for this work. ix. Mr. Simmons asked the sixth question. Ms. Phillips remarked that security at Richland Library were library staff trained on how the library addresses security issues. At PGCMLS, security was contracted through an outside source, and there seemed to be a disconnect between the library and the contractor. Guards at

Richland came to know the community. She did not have experience with armed security guards and stated that arming guards creates a sense of exclusion. x. Ms. Varney asked the seventh question. Ms. Phillips vocalized her support for solidarity for intellectual freedom. The library should promote books that everyone wants to read whatever the case may be. Libraries allow patrons access to whatever informational needs they have. She gave an example of facing a challenge to a children’s movie and how ALA and PLA both provide language staff can use to address challenges. She commented on a library system where material displays had to be approved by library administration and the board. xi. Ms. Searcy asked the eighth question. Ms. Phillips mentioned the need to develop staff and giving staff the right tools to succeed. She also stated that DEI work is important, and the library should have staff that reflect the community they serve. xii. Ms. Searcy asked the board for follow-up questions. Mr. Rand asked about the candidate’s definition of innovation and how she would use innovation as library director. Ms. Phillips stated that innovation is about creating content and not just consuming it. The library can help people by providing them the tools, resources, and trained staff. She mentioned that PGCMLS developed a co-working space to cater to entrepreneurs. She also commented on NPL’s innovative programming. xiii. Ms. Varney asked if Ms. Phillips had any questions for the board. xiv. Ms. Phillips responded by asking what challenges and opportunities the board sees the new leader facing. Ms. Ezell responded by explaining the need to embrace all associated groups, including staff and the community, and establish relationships. Ms. Searcy commented on the importance of creating a new strategic plan. Ms. Phillips talked about different strategic ideas as used by other library systems and stated that the new director could learn from other systems. xv. Ms. Phillips asked how the library board will work with the new leader. Ms. Varney commented that the director position for NPL is hired and fired by the library board, but the director serves as a department head for the mayor. The library board always works closely with the director, and work between the board and the director has never been a problem. Ms. Searcy added that the board is comprised of a diverse set of individuals with diverse skills, who lend their expertise and make policy. Mr. Simmons commented that the recent process has caused him to think that he needs to be more informed than he is. The process has forced him to be more engaged and has energized him.

xvi. Ms. Phillips asked about the library board’s ideals when it comes to DEI. Ms. Ezell stated that it would be ideal to serve all ages and all aspects. Ms. Searcy iterated that the library needs to provide pathways for staff to grow. Staff should know they can grow to the next level and the opportunity is present with the new administration. Work with Metro Human Resources affords the chance to do that for the library and the whole city. Ms. De la Rosa spoke about serving as a bridge for community members to access knowledge and utilize resources. It is important for all community members to know what the library offers. Mr. Rand emphasized that all service areas should receive all services offered by the library. Ms. Phillips related to this with a story about offering story times to different groups in different neighborhoods. xvii. Ms. Searcy thanked Ms. Phillips for her time, and Ms. Phillips thanked the board for the opportunity. She stated that she is ready to work hard for the community and staff. xviii. The board took a break at 2:17 P.M.

f. Discussion, deliberation, and decisions regarding employing a Library Director and negotiating a contract of employment. i. The session was called back to order at 2:31 P.M. ii. Ms. Miller asked the board how it would like to proceed in discussing directorship finalists, offering the option of ranking candidates by preference or having an open discussion. iii. Ms. Searcy stated that she would like to have an open discussion. iv. Ms. Varney remarked about how difficult and how important the decision would be. She explained that the finalist process over Day 1 and Day 2 was time well spent, and she thanked all that were involved. She mentioned four factors that she has been considering. First was the process leading up to the final two days and she expressed worry that the lengthy process has stained NPL’s reputation nationally. Second, she noted that all candidates have strengths and weaknesses. Third, she explained her thought to weigh the candidates against the interim director, praising the work the interim director has accomplished in her tenure. Fourth, she remarked that the board has worked together to find consensus, unlike other city boards. Due to this, the board has brought great leadership for the whole city.

v. Ms. Searcy reminded the group that the meeting was not constrained by time restrictions for the session. The discussion can continue to another board meeting where the decision could be made. If the board doesn’t feel that it has the best person, it will be the will of the board to continue the search. Ms. Searcy explained the process and how the composition of the selection committee was representative of the city in terms of demographics and skill sets. She agreed with Ms. Varney that she did not want this process to be a stain on NPL’s reputation. Lengthy delays were due to Nashville laws. She expressed gladness in how the board has taken ownership of the search process again. vi. Ms. De la Rosa agreed and thanked Ms. Searcy for making those comments. She stated that each board member has different experiences and that each can decide on which action to take. vii. Ms. Ezell asked questions about the search process and the stain on the library’s reputation. She asked what would happen if the board took a step back and what could be changed so that the board can feel that it has better results. She remarked that the board could discuss everything at another meeting and the process could be done differently a second time. viii. Ms. Varney suggested that additional candidates might apply a second time. She surmised that the length of time for the process has caused others to avoid getting involved. ix. Ms. Searcy explained that the process was hampered by forces outside of the library. People, who had volunteered to be part of the search process, had committed time to other projects. Ms. Searcy asked Ms. Miller and Mr. Jones to add clarity to the situation. x. Ms. Miller stated that the process could have been redirected if issues were known sooner. Additional volunteers could have been in place. Changes were difficult to accommodate. xi. Mr. Jones iterated that this is a board decision and that he did not want to overstep in the process. He appreciates his involvement in the process. xii. Ms. Miller remarked that she did not think that additional candidates were lost, since changes were made after the posting closed. Other searches with shorter time frames also lose candidates. xiii. Mr. Rand noted that he thought there were three good candidates and that he was still processing them.

xiv. Mr. Simmons stood behind his previous comments about the process and noted that it was time to get beyond it. The board heard great presentations on Day 1 and great interviews on Day 2. He remarked that the four candidates were great, and they all brought different things to the table. Mr. Simmons then added that Terri Luke should be considered for the position due to her work as interim director. The board should not degrade the quality of the candidates. He explained that he could discuss the selection at another meeting or take a straw poll to see the board’s opinions. He expressed his desire to have a consensus with the board’s selection. xv. Ms. Searcy directed the group to making comments on which candidates to eliminate. She stated that all candidates are great, but some have more experience than others. xvi. Mr. Rand said that he would eliminate candidate 2. xvii. Ms. De la Rosa stated that she would need some time to think. xviii. Ms. Ezell asked Mr. Rand if he would only eliminate candidate 2. xix. Mr. Rand confirmed that he would only eliminate that candidate for now. xx. Ms. Searcy commented the issue with having a candidate who has not run a city system even though they have programmatic experience. Other candidates have experience with a citywide budget, and Ms. Searcy would like the candidate to have that experience. She would eliminate candidate 1. xxi. Mr. Rand expressed his concern for candidate 2’s ability to work with senior staff and said the candidate’s answers were comprised of lots of “yes” and “no” answers. xxii. Ms. Ezell commented that candidate 2 did not seem to have too much experience working with boards. She suggested the possibility of bringing that candidate back to ask additional questions. Ms. Ezell stated that she would eliminate Roberta Phillips, since her experiences did not seem to translate to where the city currently is. xxiii. Ms. Miller remarked that a straw poll could help focus the discussion on the more favorable candidates. xxiv. Ms. Varney asked about the conversation from the last board meeting that pertained to the list of candidates. She affirmed that the board could eliminate all four candidates, and the library could still have a great director with the current interim. xxv. Ms. Searcy noted that she did not want the group to feel that it had to settle on one of the candidates, especially since the process has been so lengthy.

xxvi. Ms. Miller asked the group to do a straw poll and noted that she had the survey results from staff and community members. For the straw poll, which would only serve for conversational purposes, each board member would rank the four candidates with the number one choice being each board member’s preference for library director. xxvii. Ms. Varney asked if the group could rank five candidates. xxviii. Ms. Miller asked if the board had talked with Ms. Luke about her interest in the position. xxix. Ms. Searcy indicated they had not. xxx. Mr. Jones reiterated Ms. Miller’s point that the straw poll conducted on notecards would only facilitate discussion. There was not any surety of moving forward with one of these candidates from the exercise. xxxi. Mr. Simmons commended the candidates for their presentations and interviews and added that any of the candidates could run the library. Each candidate has their own strengths and weaknesses. Ms. Phillips is motivated but not necessarily thinking about how to implement new projects. Mr. Simmons did not think her personality would be a good fit, and she was second to last in the survey results. He continued by stating that Ms. Harrison’s presentation was like a TED talk and her interview was great. She has a desire for the position, but others have director-level experience that she does not. She also fared poorly with survey respondents. Mr. Simmons stated that Mr. Kuhl did not overly impress him with his presentation; he thought that Mr. Kuhl’s interview was more candid. Mr. Simmons confessed to have discounting Mr. Kuhl coming into the presentation and interview and noted that this position would be a logical next step for him. Mr. Simmons doubts Mr. Kuhl’s readiness to serve as a strong leader at NPL. Mr. Simmons then spoke of Mr. Helton’s library experience and that staff rated Mr. Helton as the best candidate. Mr. Helton brings many strengths, but Mr. Simmons did not think that he has the ability to be the face of the library. Mr. Simmons thought that candidates were adequate; he viewed two candidates as “non-starters” and two as “sorta-equal”. All of them are more risk than the library should take. He stated that he had not talked with Ms. Luke about her desire for the position. xxxii. Mr. Rand said that he valued Mr. Simmons’s opinion, mentioning his preparedness and thought process.

xxxiii. Mr. Simmons stated that he did not feel that appointing Ms. Luke would be a risky decision and that Ms. Luke is better than each of the four candidates. Ms. Luke has done a great job as interim. Mr. Simmons believes that Ms. Luke did not apply for the position because she did not want to be in the role for 10 – 15 years. He expressed his desire to offer Ms. Luke the position until she wants to retire; the board will then start the process over when needed. Mr. Simmons felt that the board would not be settling to select Ms. Luke and that the process worked out fine. He favored Mr. Kuhl over Mr. Helton and stated that could be due to implicit bias. He confirmed feeling better with selecting Ms. Luke over the other candidates. xxxiv. Ms. Searcy remarked that she did know Ms. Luke prior to the director vacancy, but she noted the evidence of library growth over the last two years. xxxv. Ms. De la Rosa spoke about the city’s values in terms of new leadership. She stated that she loved Ms. Harrison’s answer relating to staffing and being people-centered. Mr. Helton has experience with infrastructure, but Ms. De la Rosa voiced concerns over his relationship with staff. She noted that his doctoral program is peoplecentered by design, but it would be taking a risk as to when those teachings would reflect in his leadership. She mentioned that Mr. Kuhl brings a lot of levity, commenting on his likeability and sense of humor. Even though she liked him, she thinks there may be something missing in relation to presence. In regard to Ms. Phillips, Ms. De la Rosa explained that DEI was intentional by design and that the library needs something more. Ms. De la Rosa did not get a sense of how Ms. Phillips would manage different partners or how she would engage others. She noted Ms. Phillips’s eagerness. Ms. De la Rosa asked about a contingency for the board. xxxvi. Mr. Rand stated that no board member had explicitly said “that’s my person”. Instead, board members consistently bring up Ms. Luke. He said that the board should not make simple complicated and that no one has had anything negative to say about Ms. Luke. If the board says it likes Ms. Luke, Mr. Rand felt that it should go with Ms. Luke. The board should not be forced to make a choice that it does not want to make. xxxvii. Ms. Miller stated her admiration for Ms. Luke and the team at NPL. She remarked that selecting Ms. Luke would dispense the entire process in favor of someone that was not part of the process.

xxxviii. Ms. Searcy commented that the board would need to establish a process in a way that is objective. xxxix. Mr. Jones noted the importance of measuring each candidate by the same standard. For Ms. Luke, the board is using a narrative that it has created, not a presentation, materials, or an interview. xl. Ms. Ezell said that the board has all worked with Ms. Luke and seen what she has done. xli. Mr. Jones mentioned that the group had received input from all candidates. He stated that it would be an equity consideration and that was his advice from a DEI perspective. xlii. Ms. Varney stated that the board was required by law to include DEI and that they would have to have an interview. The board would not have to replicate the rest of the process. xliii. Mr. Jones echoed the need to consider the process through a lens of equity. xliv. Ms. Ezell asked about the process of determining Ms. Luke’s interest in participating in the process. xlv. Ms. Searcy stated that she would contact Metro Human Resource to determine that and what would need to be done to comply. She would then need to find a way to communicate that information to the board. xlvi. Ms. Miller noted the possibility of losing candidates with delays in the process. xlvii. Mr. Rand confirmed that he would be fine with that. He stated that the process has made the board realize how great with the interim director. Mr. Rand thinks that there may be fear that a new director will upset the aristocratic staff that the library has. Outside groups have repeatedly vocalized their appreciation for Ms. Luke. xlviii. Ms. Searcy noted the positive changes that she has seen during the interim period, changes that she wanted to see brought by a new director. xlix. Mr. Simmons stated that if the board rejects all candidates or suspends the process, he believes that the board has essentially selected Ms. Luke. Mr. Simmons questioned Ms. Luke’s interest in the position. l. Ms. Searcy recognized Ms. Luke, and Ms. Luke explained considerations about her age. She stated that she loves the library, but she did not apply for the position because she did not want to commit to staying for 10 – 15 years. She confirmed that she would serve as the director if the board asked her. li. Ms. Varney asked about Ms. Luke’s love for the position.

lii. Ms. Luke responded that her family consistently tells others that Ms. Luke does not work because she loves what she does and is passionate about what the library does for the community. liii. Ms. Searcy stated that the board would need to be secure in the process forward and to get advice from Metro Human Resources. liv. Derrick Smith communicated that Mr. Jones did not overstep in speaking about DEI. Mr. Smith recommended that the board delegate Ms. Searcy the ability to discuss the process with Metro’s Human Resources Director or her delegate. Many steps would need to be completed before offering employment. The board should be mindful about what is said that could be construed as an offer of employment. lv. Ms. Searcy echoed the need to make the process equal. She asked if the group needed a motion to authorize how the board contact Metro Human Resources. lvi. Mr. Smith also suggested making a motion that would determine what to do about the candidate field. This would be in fairness to them and to avoid any risk. lvii. Mr. Simmons commented that the board could say it would like to continue to consider the four candidates pending the possibility of Ms. Luke being able to accept the position. The board would like a few more days to deliberate and a chance to talk to the interim. Mr. Simmons remarked the candidates may withdraw their applications. lviii. Ms. Ezell asked about how long this portion of the process would take. lix. Mr. Simmons said that there would be no need to go through a presentation or an interview, since the board knows Ms. Luke. lx. Ms. Miller suggested going to Metro Human Resources for the next step. lxi. Mr. Jones added that determining next steps should not take long. lxii. Mr. Smith stated that it would be premature to set a timeline. If the decision is deferred to another time, the board must wait at least seven days before meeting again. lxiii. Ms. Searcy agreed that the board could determine the process from Metro Human Resources and then meet in seven days to discuss as well as implement the new process. lxiv. Mr. Jones mentioned that the group would want to maintain equity and access to the new process. lxv. Ms. Ezell asked how Ms. Searcy would communicate the new process to the board.

lxvi. Mr. Smith stated that Metro Human Resources could communicate with the board and that board members could communicate with Metro staff members individually. Metro Human Resources’ involvement could avoid having separate conversations. lxvii. Ms. Searcy asked about the type of motion needed and suggested addressing the candidates as well as delegating someone to contact Human Resources. lxviii. Mr. Smith confirmed those actions. lxix. Ms. Miller said that the board could suspend the search. lxx. In talking about how to formulate the motion, Mr. Simmons stated that he would move to suspend the search for seven days during which the board would delegate Ms. Searcy the authority to discuss with Metro Human Resources the requirements for offering Ms. Luke the job as library director. lxxi. Ms. Varney communicated that the board would need to say Ms. Luke would remain as director in absence of another director. Inside the next seven days, the board would appoint its chair to communicate with Metro Human Resources to consider Ms. Luke as the next library director. lxxii. Ms. Miller suggesting leaving names out of the motion. lxxiii. Mr. Smith reminded the board to suspend the search. lxxiv. Ms. Searcy began reading a draft of the motion and asked about how vague it could be. lxxv. Mr. Smith recommended not being vague. lxxvi. Ms. De la Rosa asked about what the board could do once the search is suspended. lxxvii. Ms. Miller stated that her communication would be separate. She could communicate to them that the search would be suspended. lxxviii. Ms. Ezell moved to suspend the director search until the next regular or special called board meeting and to authorize the board chair to engage Metro Human Resources about a process to consider Ms. Luke for new library director. Ms. Luke would remain as interim director in absence of another director. Ms. Varney seconded the motion and passed unanimously. lxxix. Mr. Smith stated that communications about regular library operations would fine, but he advised being careful about communications involving the search. lxxx. Ms. Miller remarked that she would let the finalists know that the search had been suspended. lxxxi. Ms. Varney read the following statement about the process.

Members of the Nashville public library board have completed a 16-month search process for a new director for Nashville’s Public Library. The process concluded with 2 days of interviews with 4 qualified candidates. After discussion, the board voted to suspend the search process. Terri Luke will continue as interim director until the board chair has explored options with Metro HR for next steps. lxxxii. Mr. Smith said that staff could send this to the board. lxxxiii. A staff member will send a copy of this statement as well as a link to the session’s recording. lxxxiv. Ms. Searcy thanked Ms. Miller for her participation in this process, especially for handling these issues and bringing the candidates for consideration. lxxxv. Ms. Miller confirmed that the board has a good selection of candidates. lxxxvi. Ms. Ezell commended the board and stated that it is better for having gone through this process.

IV.

Adjournment a. The meeting adjourned at 3:58 P.M.

Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting December 12, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37211 12:00 noon

Nashville Public Library Board of Trustees Special Called Meeting Minutes November 16, 2023 Main Library 615 Church Street Nashville, TN 37211 12:00PM

Members Present:

Joyce Searcy, Nadine De La Rosa, Keith Simmons, Charvis Rand, Kate Ezell, and Katy Varney

Library Staff:

Terri Luke, Kyle Barber, Lee Boulie, Bassam Habib, Lisa Bubert, Syreeta Butler, Ashley Walker-Tyler, Linda Harrison, Shawn Bakker, Anna Harutyunyan, Kate Wingate, Andrea Fanta, Sherry Adams, Susan Drye, Jennifer Otis, Jena Schmid, Nikki Glassley, Libby Cain

Others:

Derrick Smith, Assistant Metropolitan Attorney at Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Karen Miller, Bradbury Miller Associates, Razel Jones, Scott Harrison, Kia Jarmon

Call to Order / Roll Call a. The meeting was called to order at 12:03 PM.

II.

III.

Public Comments a. Ms. Lana Boleyjack stated the following: “Good afternoon. My name is Lana Boleyjack and as many of you know, I am Linda Harrison’s assistant. However, today I am speaking from the heart, of my own volition, as a woman of color. I won’t mince words: what we all witnessed on October 31st, whether you recognized it or not, was our library board upholding blatant white privilege and disregard for fairness and equity here at NPL. For months I have sat quietly recording minutes for these meetings, trying to understand the inner workings of the library world, and the outcome of the director search has been by far the most disappointing yet. While Terri Luke has been our interim director for over a year, and

ought to be commended for her efforts to keep this ship afloat, I fail to see how the decision to offer her the position of director came to be. If we are using the statements made by our library board members as a litmus test for decision making, the reasoning behind appointing Terri Luke as director would fail to meet their own standards. Let’s review what has been said: Joyce Searcy stated she would eliminate Linda Harrison as a candidate because she lacked experience as a director, and yet, Terri Luke has no prior experience as a library director before becoming interim. I would also be remiss not to remind you all that Terri Luke alone cannot and should not be credited with keeping this library system on course. The entirety of the core admin team has aided her in ways akin to a library director, and so to imply that her interim experience qualifies her as director indirectly implies that each of our assistant directors are qualified in that regard. Charvis Rand expressed his desire for a decision-making process that is “fair and equal,” but in the end advocated rather vehemently for offering this position to someone who was not held to the same standard as the other candidates. Terri Luke did not apply for the position, she was not interviewed, and she has not given us a comprehensive view of her vision for this library system. She herself even admitted to being reluctant to serve in this position for more than 5 years and has shared with multiple staff members that she did not want the position to begin with. And let’s not forget the statement made by Keith Simmons: not only was Chad Helton someone he could not see being the “face of NPL,” but he also admitted, verbatim, to harboring implicit bias by wanting to see a director that “looked like him.” What’s worse is that this statement went unchecked by anyone else on The Library Board. Mr. Rand, you said, and I quote, “I have a feeling, there’s a sense of fear that whoever we replace at this time might mess up the aristocratic staff and the momentum we are having in our libraries today.” On the contrary, choosing not to select a candidate who applied and went through the interview process will mess up the momentum we have. As a library board you are showing us just how little you value equity. Thank you for hearing me.” b. Ms. Lisa Bubert stated the following: “Good afternoon. As you all know, my name is Lisa Bubert, and I am the union steward with SEIU Local 205 representing our frontline staff. I know that many of you, if not all of you, may have received emails from staff regarding the suspension of the search process two weeks ago and the inclusion of Terri Luke as a candidate for consideration. I understand there may be some confusion as to why staff are responding with mixed feelings about a colleague we have previously characterized as a kind, capable, and generous leader performing admirably during her interim appointment. I wanted to take this moment to clarify this response. Throughout this search process, staff have grown as frustrated as the Board over the length of time, the obscurity of the process requirements, and the question as to whether the candidates truly are the best we can find, given all these obstacles. Because of the obstacles and the importance of this decision, we tried to make ourselves as clear as possible that we wanted to have our voices heard when it came to the final say. Staff had moved forward with the process with an open mind; we made our public comments, we filled out the initial survey, and we researched the

candidates. Staff came forward to their stewards with their questions and concerns and I did my duty as a steward to relay these questions and concerns to you all. I have been pleased with my conversations, satisfied that we were being heard, which was only confirmed when Keith read an email I sent to him a few weeks back about what staff feel NPL needs in their next director—as it communicated to us that the Board is listening with interest to what staff have to say. With an open mind, we watched the candidate presentations and interviews. Several of us were able to come in-person to watch, but most of us watched from every corner of the system via the livestream available. We ranked the candidates as requested. At one point, we even grew very excited about the possibility of the candidate who ranked at the top of that survey. But as we watched the board disregard the candidate deliberations and go straight to questioning whether Terri would actually be the best candidate, we were dismayed. Terri did not apply for the position. Staff were not able to watch her presentation, were not able to watch her interview, were not able to ask her questions. Most importantly, we were not able to rank Terri in the survey alongside the other candidates. What I’m saying here has nothing to do with whether or not Terri is a great leader or whether she truly is the best fit for the job – our opinion of Terri as a kind, capable, and generous leader has not changed. But I’m not exaggerating when I say that staff feel robbed of the chance to lend their voice in this process now. We are concerned that Terri has been placed in an impossible position—and we are concerned that, should the Board not be able to move forward with Terri, we will lose the candidates we do have and then embark on another months-long process once again. If the Board wants to move forward with considering Terri while still respecting staff voice, we ask that Terri go through the same process as the other candidates – apply, present, be interviewed, and be ranked. Terri may still very well end up on top as the staff’s preferred candidate. But the difference is that you will know for sure. Thank you for your time and your energy. We know this process hasn’t been easy or quick, but we appreciate the Board’s desire to get it right. We also appreciate the Board’s earnest desire to hear staff and allow staff the opportunity to be heard. Thank you.” c. Ms. Syreeta Butler stated the following: “Hi, I am Syreeta Butler, the manager of Limitless Libraries. Thank you for the opportunity to speak. It was not my intention to speak today but I will share that I have spoken with a lot of staff, and I want to reiterate their feelings, which has already been done in some sense. I think there is a bit of disappointment that exists with this whole process. We are concerned about how the board is moving forward with this process. There should be some finality and some understanding that is reached that gives us a sense that you care about what our feelings and thoughts are, but [also] being able to guide us in a way that makes us understand how you’re guiding us, and the need[s] that we are seeking [are] being met. Speaking from a personal standpoint, I was really concerned about some of the commentary that happened after all of the interviews, and I would like for that to be addressed in some way or at least [get] some understanding of what the thought process was behind some of the commentary. This is basically what I wanted to share with you guys today, so thank you.”

d. Mr. Scott Harrison stated the following: “I, too, was very upset when I watched the interview process and the presentations. I listened to you, Keith, talk about how you came to the library, how your father was in the market selling tobacco and you ran over to the library and you got to [the library steps] and got nervous and were afraid to go in, and you said, verbatim, you never wanted anyone to feel like they were too nervous to go into the library or have access to the library. But what I watched happen in the deliberations was that very thing. You […] said that you wanted someone that looked just like you. And that bothered, I’m sure, everyone who was listening to that […] I met my wife when she was working at Pruitt. I’ve been with her throughout her whole process with the library. I’ve watched her do amazing things with the library. I’ve watched her cultivate relationships in the community. I think she’s the best candidate because she’s the internal candidate, and also the candidate I feel like would best represent this library, and I wanted to stand up and tell you that today. Thank you.” e. Mr. Jason Kuhl sent a written statement in the mail addressed to The Library Board: “Dear Members of The [Library] Board, I wanted to thank you for allowing me privilege of presenting myself as a candidate for Library Director. I sincerely enjoyed meeting all of you and learning more about the library and the opportunities and challenges of the role. Libraries are wonderful community assets—thank you for your dedication to them. The Nashville Public Library is in good hands! All the best, Jason Kuhl.” f. Ms. Joyce Searcy shared that the consultant firm— Bradbury Miller— provided the library board with a lot of training materials, some of which addressed bias, and Mr. Simmons may have been referencing implicit bias because it was in the training material. Ms. Searcy continued that she personally was not offended by what Mr. Simmons said regarding wanting someone who looked like him to be given the position of director. g. Ms. Nadine De La Rosa thanked the staff members who gave public comments for sharing their opinions, stated that the sentiments heard were valid. Ms. De La Rosa continued that The Library Board members were human beings making hard decisions and this process was not easy, especially when done publicly. Ms. De La Rosa asked for grace in the process. h. Mr. Charvis Rand recounted that the director search was not an easy process, and that The Library Board was trying to be transparent.

Ms. Kate Ezell stated that if The Library Board was guilty of anything, it was holding the library and its staff members in such high esteem that they want a director who would meet their high standards.

Mr. Simmons stated he did not mean to say that he wanted the library director to look like him, rather that he recognized that each of the library board members had their own biases that they would have to put aside. Mr. Simmons added that if anyone felt as if he were racially biased, he would be happy to recuse himself and let the remainder of the library board members make this decision, in an effort to not taint the decision because of an offhand comment he made.

k. Ms. Searcy thanked the public commenters and those present. IV.

Old Business a. Discussion, Deliberation, and Decisions Regarding Employing a Library Director and Negotiating an Offer i. Ms. Karen Miller stated she would like to start the decision-making process with a straw poll, where the library board members would each make a ranking of the candidates in order of preference. Ms. Miller stated that she would create a composite of the choices, which would be used for further discussion. ii. Mr. Simmons recused himself from the decision-making process and left the meeting. iii. Ms. Miller shared the results of the straw poll: Ms. De La Rosa chose no one as her first choice, Mr. Chad Helton second, Mr. Jason Kuhl third, Ms. Linda Harrison fourth, and Ms. Roberta Phillips last. Ms. Varney chose Mr. Helton as her first choice, Mr. Kuhl second, Ms. Phillips third, and Mr. Harrison last, adding “with hesitation on all.” Mr. Rand chose Ms. Harrison as his first choice, Mr. Helton second, Ms. Phillips third, and Mr. Kuhl last. Ms. Searcy chose Mr. Helton as her first choice, Mr. Kuhl second, Ms. Phillips third, and Mr. Harrison last. Ms. Ezell chose Mr. Kuhl as her first choice, Mr. Helton second, Ms. Phillips third, and Ms. Harrison last, adding “with reservations.” Based on the total results compiled, The Library Board rated Mr. Helton first, Mr. Kuhl second, Ms. Harrison third, and Ms. Phillips fourth. Ms. Miller suggested eliminating Ms. Phillips, seeing as she had not been any of the library board members’ first choice. iv. The Library Board discussed Mr. Helton:

Mr. Rand chose Mr. Helton as his second choice because Mr. Helton answered questions in a way that was showed he had the proper experience, and he seemed to be very easy to work with. Ms. De La Rosa stated she did not feel confident choosing a number one due to conflicting information presented in the presentation, interviews, and survey information. Ms. De La Rosa chose Mr. Helton as her second choice because he oversaw the largest budget and executed his vision in a way that no other candidates did, but her limitations concerning Mr. Helton had to do with relationship building internally and externally, and in his interview, he gave two examples for how he could have honored staff and failed, and he offered no reconciliation for that issue. Ms. Ezell chose Mr. Helton as her second choice because she did not feel confident in his interest level with working with NPLF. Ms. Varney chose Mr. Helton as her first choice because he had experience running a library system at a size and scope that was equivalent to NPL, and she admired his honesty addressing his reasoning for leaving his last position; however, she still had some reservations regarding his resignation. Ms. Searcy chose Mr. Helton as her first choice because of his experience with unions and a large library system, but she had difficulty with his presentation being hard to read and she was unclear on what his priorities would be at NPL. v. The Library Board discussed Mr. Kuhl: Mr. Rand expressed that he thought Mr. Kuhl was funny and had a way of making people feel relaxed, but he did not answer the interview questions in a clear and concise way, and he anticipated it putting a strain on the core admin team. Ms. De La Rosa agreed with Mr. Rand, and said Ms. Kuhl was not very clear and direct about his vision, and he seemed very hesitant. Ms. De La Rosa recalled Mr. Kuhl mentioning his communication style tended to shift depending on what staff members he was in front of, and this made her feel uncomfortable about potential bias being an issue with Mr. Kuhl. Ms. Ezell chose Mr. Kuhl as her first choice because of his concerns regarding sustainability and his ability to stand on his principles. Ms. Ezell believed that Mr. Kuhl would work well with NPLF as well. Ms. Varney agreed with the previous assessments made from The Library Board, but she believed Mr. Kuhl lacked the gravitas of a Metro Director. Ms. Searcy stated Mr. Kuhl would make a great motivational speaker, but he did not fit for her as a director and during the interview, he would not give direct and concise answers to the questions being asked. vi. The Library Board discussed Ms. Harrison:

Mr. Rand believed Ms. Harrison had more of an advantage because The Library Board had seen her work, and she had been a great mentor to many staff. Mr. Rand said Ms. Harrison understood the culture of the city of Nashville and utilized innovation as a lifestyle rather than a tool. Mr. Rand continued that Ms. Harrison had been in both senior leadership positions and other positions across the library system, making her adept at understanding the challenges that staff may have from different angles. Mr. Rand stated that Ms. Harrison did not have experience running a library system, but Mr. Rand believed Ms. Harrison had the capability to run NPL. Ms. De La Rosa stated Ms. Harrison’s desire to connect with people really impressed her; however, her hesitation came from looking at the staff survey results, seeing as Ms. Harrison scored the lowest in the area regarding connection to staff. Ms. De La Rosa continued that because there was no way to define why her scores were the lowest, this finding brought up a concern for Ms. De La Rosa, considering Ms. Harrison’s advantage of being known by staff. Ms. Ezell also expressed concerned with the library staff results from the surveys, despite Ms. Harrison having had good rapport with Ms. Ezell and her work in tandem with NPLF. Ms. Varney stated she felt it was necessary to have a director who had led a library comparable to the size of NPL. Ms. Varney stated having experience in this sort of work was a must in her opinion. Ms. Searcy expressed wanting a candidate who had done budgeting for a library system and had a director background. Ms. Searcy stated she was concerned that there were no recommendation letters from Ms. Donna Nicely or Mr. Kent Oliver, with whom Ms. Harrison mentioned working under in her presentation. Ms. Searcy also said that Ms. Harrison’s vision for an early learning center created by NPL would put the library in direct competition with MNPS and was not within the confines of the NPL’s mission. vii. Ms. Miller thanked The Library Board for taking the time to have a thorough discussion. Ms. Miller stated that the next steps would involve The Library Board discussing whether they would choose someone from the list of candidates of not, based on the information shared during the discussion period. Ms. Miller stated there were good candidates to consider, and she recommended The Library Board choose to make an offer to someone soon to avoid candidates losing interest. viii. Ms. Searcy recommended making a motion to reject the slate and start over. Mr. Razel Jones stated from a DEI perspective, one way or another The Library Board would make history by either choosing someone who was new and groundbreaking or continuing to repeat cycles that had been in place. ix. Mr. Rand made a motion to remove Ms. Phillips as a candidate. Ms. Ezell seconded. The motion passed.

x. Mr. Rand made a motion to remove Mr. Kuhl as a candidate. Ms. De La Rosa seconded. The motion passed. xi. Ms. Searcy called for a recess @ 1:31 PM. xii. The meeting resumed at 1:38 PM. xiii. Mr. Rand made a motion to request a second interview from the remaining two candidate. Ms. Ezell seconded. Ms. Ezell asked for Mr. Rand’s reasoning behind this motion. Mr. Rand stated he believed a second interview would help The Library Board eliminate any additional reservations they had about the remaining two candidates. Ms. De La Rosa asked what the contingency plan would be concerning a follow up interview, and how they might determine what kinds of questions would be asked of these candidates compared to the first interview. Ms. Miller stated it would be necessary to determine what questions they would need answered. Mr. Rand was in favor of the motion. Ms. Searcy, Ms. Ezell, Ms. De La Rosa, and Ms. Varney opposed. The motion was defeated four to one. xiv. Ms. Varney made a motion to conclude this search with no offer to any of the candidates. Ms. Ezell seconded. Ms. Ezell stated that The Library Board as a group had not all been on the same page, and that was concerning to her. Mr. Rand stated that the two candidates left were good candidates and he stood by his original motion that there should be an additional interview. Ms. De La Rosa said that some of the needs listed in the interview rubric outweighed others, and she questioned whether the context of the search as a whole had changed. Ms. De La Rosa continued, asking how much the library needed from a library director in the present, and were there ways that The Library Board could support the person put in place, if a person was chosen. Ms. Miller stated The Library Board seemed to be afraid to decide, and she reminded them that indecision was still a decision. Ms. Varney stated that the hesitancy from The Library Board had to do with the slate of candidates. Ms. Ezell, Ms. Searcy, and Ms. Varney were in favor of the motion. Ms. De La Rosa and Mr. Rand opposed. The motion passed three to two. V.

Adjournment a. The meeting was adjourned at 1:57 PM.

Next Scheduled Board of Trustees Meeting December 12, 2023 615 Church Street Nashville, TN, 37211 12:00 PM

Respectfully submitted by Lana Boleyjack.

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library

Cardholders as % of Population Served

41.8%

October 2023 New Cards: 3,674 Active Cardholders: 294,070

Cardholders as % of Population Served

42.2%

November 2023 New Cards: 3,295 Active Cardholders: 297,131

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library Cardholders New Registrations Volunteer Services Number of Volunteers Volunteer Hours Attendance for Room Use Community Use Library Use Reference Answered Cardholders New Registrations Volunteer Services Number of Volunteers Volunteer Hours Attendance for Room Use Community Use Library Use Reference Answered

Oct-23 3,674 Oct-23 151 1,086 Oct-23

Oct-23 Year-to-Date 3,674

Active Patron Cards 294,070

Oct-22

Year-to-Date

155 1,193 Oct-22

5,683 21,738 Oct-23

36,475 15,210

Nov-23 3,295 Nov-23 148 922

20,210 Nov-23 Year-to-Date 3,295

Active Patron Cards 297,131

Nov-22

Year-to-Date

Nov-23 3,940 21,545 Nov-23 24,085

159 1,173 Nov-22 24,890 9,003 Nov-22 14,923

% Change 2022-2023 -2.58% -8.97%

% Change 2022-2023 -84.42% 42.92% % Change 2022-2023 34.76%

Oct-22

27,236

642 4,431

Average Cards in Last 12 Months 290,791

790 5,353 % Change 2022-2023 -84.17% 139.31% % Change 2022-2023 61.40%

Average Cards in Last 12 Months 289,118 % Change 2022-2023 -6.92% -21.40%

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library Wireless Data Wireless Bellevue Bordeaux Donelson East Edgehill Edmondson Pike Goodlettsville Green Hills Hadley Park Hermitage Inglewood Looby Madison Main North Old Hickory Pruitt Richland Park Southeast Thompson Lane Watkins Park NPL Total

Oct-23 Sessions 3,902 1,515 251 558 232 2,301 1,141 1,963 734 2,839 457 157 1,399 14,497 94 686 605 1,024 2,573 548 171 37,647

Oct-23 % of Total 10.36% 4.02% 0.67% 1.48% 0.62% 6.11% 3.03% 5.21% 1.95% 7.54% 1.21% 0.42% 3.72% 38.51% 0.25% 1.82% 1.61% 2.72% 6.83% 1.46% 0.45%

Month Wireless % 69.2% 51.6% 46.8% 52.8% 49.3% 54.4% 50.7% 61.2% 47.5% 52.8% 40.7% 28.0% 37.6% 65.8% 29.1% 64.2% 46.1% 45.0% 69.1% 24.3% 57.0% 58.1%

Oct-22 Sessions 2,302 1,061 455 570 428 1,439 782 1,859 470 1,777 483 198 718 12,491 110 352 637 660 5,007 141 242 32,182

Wireless Bellevue Bordeaux Donelson East Edgehill Edmondson Pike Goodlettsville Green Hills Hadley Park Hermitage Inglewood Looby Madison Main North Old Hickory Pruitt Richland Park Southeast Thompson Lane Watkins Park NPL Total

% Change 2022-2023 69.50% 42.79% -44.84% -2.11% -45.79% 59.90% 45.91% 5.59% 56.17% 59.76% -5.38% -20.71% 94.85% 16.06% -14.55% 94.89% -5.02% 55.15% -48.61% 288.65% -29.34% 16.98%

Nov-23 Sessions 10,228 6,275 3,736 2,271 697 8,013 2,727 7,249 740 6,952 1,749 2,605 3,972 38,310 1,328 1,106 1,752 2,307 18,045 1,052 702 121,816

Nov-23 % of Total 8.40% 5.15% 3.07% 1.86% 0.57% 6.58% 2.24% 5.95% 0.61% 5.71% 1.44% 2.14% 3.26% 31.45% 1.09% 0.91% 1.44% 1.89% 14.81% 0.86% 0.58%

Month Wireless % 69.2% 51.6% 46.8% 52.8% 49.3% 54.4% 50.7% 61.2% 47.5% 52.8% 40.7% 28.0% 37.6% 65.8% 29.1% 64.2% 46.1% 45.0% 69.1% 24.3% 57.0% 58.1%

Nov-22 Sessions 2,281 986 332 451 290 1,425 644 1,776 340 1,674 386 143 606 9,289 96 331 513 478 4,424 168 247 26,880

% Change 2022-2023 348.40% 536.41% 1025.30% 403.55% 140.34% 462.32% 323.45% 308.16% 117.65% 315.29% 353.11% 1721.68% 555.45% 312.42% 1283.33% 234.14% 241.52% 382.64% 307.89% 526.19% 184.21% 353.18%

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library

Database and Website Data Public Computer Use Total Computer Use Total Wireless Use

Oct-22 21,027 32,182

% Change 2022-2023 5.25% 16.98%

Oct-23 375,411

Oct-22 351,642

% Change 2022-2023 6.76%

Oct-23 16,717

Oct-22 6,644

% Change 2022-2023 151.61%

Oct-23 22,131 37,647

Website Visits Webserver

Database Usage Sessions

Public Computer Use Total Computer Use Total Wireless Use

Nov-23 18,871 121,816

Nov-22 17,128 26,880

% Change 2022-2023 10.18% 353.18%

Nov-23 304,062

Nov-22 347,115

% Change 2022-2023 -12.40%

Nov-22 10,372

% Change 2022-2023 130.84%

Website Visits Webserver

Database Usage Sessions

Nov-23 23,943

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library Visits

VISITS TREND FY2324

FY2223

FY2122

FY2021

450000 375000 300000 225000 150000

75000 0

JUL Visits Bellevue Bordeaux Donelson East Edgehill Edmondson Pike Goodlettsville Green Hills Hadley Park Hermitage Inglewood Looby Madison Main North Old Hickory Pruitt Richland Park Southeast Thompson Lane Watkins Park NPL Total

Oct-23 Visits 11,011 4,789 6,161 9,748 3,430 17,516 5,781 22,637 1,933 11,619 12,285 3,121 12,867 53,353 5,245 3,310 7,237 9,230 10,964 10,861 3,942 227,040

AU G

SEP

Oct-22 Visits 17,335 6,099 5,817 8,185 2,587 14,101 4,931 19,614 1,917 15,422 12,106 3,304 19,450 41,313 3,626 2,616 7,601 8,249 12,204 8,094 3,014 217,585

OCT

% Change 2022-2023 -36.48% -21.48% 5.91% 19.10% 32.59% 24.22% 17.24% 15.41% 0.83% -24.66% 1.48% -5.54% -33.85% 29.14% 44.65% 26.53% -4.79% 11.89% -10.16% 34.19% 30.79% 4.35%

NOV

Oct-23 Circ / Visit 1.71 0.48 0.59 0.40 0.34 1.06 1.50 0.99 0.25 1.30 0.44 0.29 0.41 3.63 0.15 0.58 0.04 1.02 0.62 0.25 0.04 1.46

Visits Bellevue Bordeaux Donelson East Edgehill Edmondson Pike Goodlettsville Green Hills Hadley Park Hermitage Inglewood Looby Madison Main North Old Hickory Pruitt Richland Park Southeast Thompson Lane Watkins Park NPL Total

DEC

JA N

Oct-22 Circ / Visit 1.08 0.43 0.63 0.40 0.35 1.27 1.60 1.18 0.16 0.92 0.44 0.23 0.27 4.82 0.12 0.72 0.04 0.95 0.64 0.32 0.05 1.53

% Change 2022-2023 57.87% 11.84% -6.87% -0.57% -3.80% -16.82% -5.96% -16.44% 55.08% 41.45% -1.71% 23.85% 52.91% -24.66% 19.30% -20.30% -3.64% 7.39% -2.93% -20.89% -14.37% -4.73%

Nov-23 Visits 8,017 4,393 4,956 9,446 2,613 16,383 5,003 22,256 1,398 10,629 13,360 2,541 13,236 42,388 4,918 3,188 5,446 7,597 7,525 9,124 2,995 197,412

Nov-22 Visits 14,811 5,860 4,567 7,303 2,306 12,668 4,024 17,383 1,494 13,690 10,520 2,866 18,411 28,240 3,271 2,402 3,861 6,412 7,543 8,402 3,961 179,995

FEB

MAR

% Change 2022-2023 -45.87% -25.03% 8.52% 29.34% 13.31% 29.33% 24.33% 28.03% -6.43% -22.36% 27.00% -11.34% -28.11% 50.10% 50.35% 32.72% 41.05% 18.48% -0.24% 8.59% -24.39% 9.68%

APR

Nov-23 Circ / Visit 2.03 0.51 0.72 0.38 0.34 1.01 1.51 0.95 0.29 1.32 0.38 0.25 0.38 3.72 0.15 0.57 0.04 1.07 0.72 0.28 0.03 1.43

M AY

Nov-22 Circ / Visit 1.20 0.41 0.74 0.42 0.38 1.37 1.84 1.22 0.27 0.95 0.48 0.23 0.25 7.01 0.16 0.78 0.06 1.20 0.78 0.32 0.02 1.79

JUN

% Change 2022-2023 69.77% 24.27% -2.68% -8.86% -9.84% -26.45% -17.95% -22.09% 8.19% 39.20% -20.93% 7.77% 48.53% -46.87% -7.79% -27.16% -30.72% -11.10% -7.65% -12.50% 42.77% -19.90%

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library Circulation Data eMedia eAudiobooks eVideo eBooks eMusic eMagazines Total

Oct-23

Oct-22

115,850 9,285 113,675 1,808 27,133 267,751

95,230 6,417 104,219 1,531 6,975 214,372

eMedia

YTD

% Change 2022-2023 458,078 21.65% 34,045 44.69% 464,319 9.07% 6,877 18.09% 64,784 289.00% 1,028,103 24.90% YTD

Nov-23

Nov-22

113,927 9,535 111,372 1,873 24,735 261,442

92,067 6,223 100,964 1,607 6,625 207,486

eAudiobooks eVideo eBooks eMusic eMagazines Total

% Change 2022-2023 572,005 23.74% 43,580 53.22% 575,691 10.31% 8,750 16.55% 89,519 273.36% 1,289,545 26.00%

CIRCULATION TREND FY2324

FY2223

FY2122

FY2021

625,000 575,000 525,000 475,000 425,000 375,000 325,000 275,000 225,000 175,000

JUL

AUG SE P

OCT N OV D EC

JAN

FE B M AR AP R M AY JUN

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library

Circulation Bellevue Bordeaux Donelson East Edgehill Edmondson Pike Goodlettsville Green Hills Hadley Park Equal Access Hermitage Inglewood Looby Madison Main North Old Hickory Pruitt Richland Park Southeast Thompson Lane Watkins Park eMedia Talking Library NPL Total

Oct-23 Circulation 32,482 6,535 8,508 7,614 4,161 31,299 15,144 38,701 2,367 366 26,512 10,947 3,391 12,787 42,480 3,076 5,521 1,861 15,026 16,105 7,023 1,461 267,751 48 561,166

Month Oct-23 Oct-22 % of Total Circulation 5.79% 33,952 1.16% 6,821 1.52% 7,933 1.36% 6,416 0.74% 3,110 5.58% 29,796 2.70% 13,979 6.90% 40,753 0.42% 2,073 0.07% 306 4.72% 27,397 1.95% 10,519 0.60% 2,802 2.28% 12,059 7.57% 44,644 0.55% 2,295 0.98% 5,223 0.33% 1,620 2.68% 13,304 2.87% 17,136 1.25% 7,586 0.26% 1,338 47.71% 214,372 0.01% 2 505,436

Nov-23 Circulation 26,668 5,762 7,427 6,717 3,418 26,373 13,312 34,076 1,942 317 24,522 9,483 2,780 11,123 36,229 2,819 4,750 1,647 13,187 13,526 6,486 1,291 261,442 1 515,298

% Change 2022-2023 -4.33% -4.19% 7.25% 18.67% 33.79% 5.04% 8.33% -5.04% 14.18% 19.61% -3.23% 4.07% 21.02% 6.04% -4.85% 34.03% 5.71% 14.88% 12.94% -6.02% -7.42% 9.19% 24.90% 2300.00% 11.03%

Oct-23 Year-to-Date 136,168 24,939 34,828 29,774 15,537 125,630 60,180 165,340 8,976 1,133 109,158 44,796 12,157 53,845 173,286 11,105 21,892 7,437 58,364 63,096 27,508 5,495 1,028,103 51 2,218,798

Month Nov-23 Nov-22 % of Total Circulation 5.18% 30,313 1.12% 6,007 1.44% 7,119 1.30% 5,987 0.66% 3,064 5.12% 27,973 2.58% 12,699 6.61% 35,873 0.38% 1,996 0.06% 284 4.76% 24,756 1.84% 9,868 0.54% 2,541 2.16% 11,115 7.03% 39,794 0.55% 2,187 0.92% 4,872 0.32% 1,298 2.56% 12,656 2.62% 14,511 1.26% 6,825 0.25% 1,194 50.74% 207,486 0.00% 3 470,421

Fiscal Year-to-Date Oct-22 Year-to-Date 139,065 25,706 31,594 25,042 12,093 121,634 56,208 169,687 7,595 1,149 108,469 40,207 10,136 48,207 184,511 9,134 19,342 6,318 51,906 65,689 28,785 3,767 867,633 10 2,033,887

% Change 2022-2023 -12.02% -4.08% 4.33% 12.19% 11.55% -5.72% 4.83% -5.01% -2.71% 11.62% -0.95% -3.90% 9.41% 0.07% -8.96% 28.90% -2.50% 26.89% 4.20% -6.79% -4.97% 8.12% 26.00% -66.67% 9.54%

Nov-23 Year-to-Date 162,836 30,701 42,255 36,491 18,955 152,003 73,492 199,416 10,918 1,450 133,680 54,279 14,937 64,968 209,515 13,924 26,642 9,084 71,551 76,622 33,994 6,786 1,289,545 52 2,734,096

% Change 2022-2023 -2.08% -2.98% 10.24% 18.90% 28.48% 3.29% 7.07% -2.56% 18.18% -1.39% 0.64% 11.41% 19.94% 11.70% -6.08% 21.58% 13.18% 17.71% 12.44% -3.95% -4.44% 45.87% 18.50% 410.00% 9.09%

Fiscal Year-to-Date Nov-22 Year-to-Date 169,378 31,713 38,713 31,029 15,157 149,607 68,907 205,560 9,591 1,433 133,225 50,075 12,677 59,322 224,305 11,321 24,214 7,616 64,562 80,200 35,610 4,961 1,075,119 13 2,504,308

% Change 2022-2023 -3.86% -3.19% 9.15% 17.60% 25.06% 1.60% 6.65% -2.99% 13.84% 1.19% 0.34% 8.40% 17.83% 9.52% -6.59% 22.99% 10.03% 19.28% 10.83% -4.46% -4.54% 36.79% 19.94% 300.00% 9.18%

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library

LIMITLESS LIBRARIES MATERIALS CIRCULATED FY2324

FY2223

FY2122

FY2021

14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0 JUL

AUG

SEP

OCT

NOV

DEC

JAN

FEB

MAR

APR

MAY

JUNE

October Programming Data % Change 2022-2023 44.72% 100.80% 35.79% -30.95% 47.65% Change 41.02% 46.84% 68.41% -20.18% 46.44%

Programming Juvenile Programs Teen Programs Adult Programs Senior Programs Total Programs Juvenile Programs Teen Programs Adult Programs Senior Programs Total Attendance

Oct-23

Oct-22

631 504 626 58 1,819 Oct-23 26,510 6,003 10,566 451 43,530

436 251 461 84 1,232 Oct-22 18,799 4,088 6,274 565 29,726

PROGRAMS BY AGE GROUP

1,518 258 43 1,819

988 212 32 1,232

% Change 2022-2023 53.64% 21.70% 34.38% 47.65%

27,260 15,836 434 43,530

Oct-22 19,994 9,209 523 29,726

% Change 2022-2023 36.34% 71.96% -17.02% 46.44%

Programming Oct-23 In Person Outreach Virtual Total Programs

Oct-22

Programming Oct-23 In Person Outreach Virtual Total Attendance

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE BY AGE GROUP

Juvenile Programs

Teen Programs

Juvenile Programs

Teen Programs

Adult Programs

Senior Programs

Adult Programs

Senior Programs

3.19% 34.41%

6.82% 37.42%

27.71%

20.37%

34.69%

35.39%

OCT-23

OCT-22

1.04% 24.27%

1.90% 21.11%

13.79%

13.75%

60.90%

63.24%

O CT - 2 3

O CT - 2 2

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library October Programming Data Library Programming

Library NO.

Location Totals Outreach Virtual

Totals

Programs by Age Group Teen Adult

Juv

Senior

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

No.

Aud.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

ARCHIVES 0 0 BELLEVUE 92 1,897 BORDEAUX 59 574 BBTL (Bringing Bks to Life!) 34 832 BBTL (Adult Literacy) 6 280 DONELSON 31 506 EAST 51 821 EDGEHILL 37 299 EDMONDSON PIKE 82 1,593 GOODLETTSVILLE 44 601 GREEN HILLS 84 1,688 HADLEY PARK 26 98 HERMITAGE 65 1,470 INGLEWOOD 41 621 LOOBY 11 94 MADISON 70 781 MAIN - Adult Svcs 229 1,290 MAIN - Children Svcs 48 1,990 MAIN - Digital Inclusion 0 0 MAIN - LSDHH/Equal Access 2 52 MAIN - Puppet Truck 0 0 MAIN - Special Coll. 11 262 MAIN - Studio NPL 179 670 MAIN - Teen Svcs 28 247 MAIN - Wishing Chair Productions 44 2829 NORTH 23 155 OLD HICKORY 23 473 PRUITT 41 4103 RICHLAND PARK 26 1081 SOUTHEAST 97 1572 THOMPSON LANE 27 273 WATKINS PARK 7 108 TOTALS 1,518 27,260

1 3 0 7 0 5 5 2 11 4 2 9 1 3 1 6 5 6 14 2 68 0 36 5 0 21 4 13 6 11 7 0 258

37 515 0 138 0 96 369 200 353 1,591 126 159 12 195 150 550 57 108 61 300 4,988 0 1,266 167 0 729 487 195 1177 899 911 0 15,836

0 0 0 32 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 2 0 0 43

0 0 0 68 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 46 6 0 0 4 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 240 0 64 0 0 434

1 95 59 73 6 36 56 39 94 48 86 35 67 46 12 76 235 54 14 5 68 11 215 33 44 44 27 57 32 110 34 7 1,819

37 2,412 574 1,038 280 602 1,190 499 1,947 2,192 1,814 257 1,528 822 244 1,331 1,351 2,098 61 357 4,988 262 1,936 414 2829 884 960 4538 2258 2535 1184 108 43,530

0 32 18 32 0 16 18 34 30 18 30 18 24 25 7 35 0 52 0 2 58 1 0 0 39 24 16 24 21 40 13 4 631

0 1,435 190 809 0 483 590 273 1,531 1,859 828 186 905 665 220 1,115 0 2,017 0 52 4,375 12 0 0 2734 625 841 302 2188 1626 596 53 26,510

0 38 33 0 0 1 38 0 23 9 31 0 4 2 0 17 0 0 0 0 0 1 210 33 4 1 7 1 6 38 4 3 504

0 668 337 0 0 15 600 0 114 88 734 0 50 0 0 85 0 0 0 0 0 17 1,491 414 89 15 97 5 15 657 457 55 6,003

1 24 3 41 6 19 0 5 35 19 19 17 38 19 5 13 235 2 2 3 10 9 4 0 0 16 4 23 5 32 17 0 626

37 294 15 229 280 104 0 226 237 225 216 71 561 157 24 92 1,351 81 43 305 613 233 431 0 0 198 22 4083 55 252 131 0 10,566

0 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 6 2 6 0 1 0 0 11 0 0 12 0 0 0 1 0 1 3 0 9 0 0 0 0 58

0 15 32 0 0 0 0 0 65 20 36 0 12 0 0 39 0 0 18 0 0 0 14 0 6 46 0 148 0 0 0 0 451

Library Programming

Library NO.

Location Totals Outreach Virtual

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

ARCHIVES 0 0 MAIN - Adult Svcs 229 1,290 MAIN - Children Svcs 48 1,990 MAIN - LSDHH/Equal Access 2 52 MAIN - Special Coll. 11 262 MAIN - Studio NPL 179 670 MAIN - Teen Svcs 28 247 MAIN - Wishing Chair Productions 44 2829 TOTALS 541 7,340

1 5 6 2 0 36 5 0 55

37 57 108 300 0 1,266 167 0 1,935

NO. 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2

Totals

Programs by Age Group Teen Adult

Juv

AUD.

No.

Aud.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

0 4 0 5 0 0 0 0 9

1 235 54 5 11 215 33 44 598

37 1,351 2,098 357 262 1,936 414 2829 9,284

0 0 52 2 1 0 0 39 94

0 0 2,017 52 12 0 0 2734 4,815

0 0 0 0 1 210 33 4 248

0 0 0 0 17 1,491 414 89 2,011

1 235 2 3 9 4 0 0 254

37 1,351 81 305 233 431 0 0 2,438

*MN includes Studio and Wishing Chair, which hosts outreach events at other locations.

Senior NO.

AUD. 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2

0 0 0 0 0 14 0 6 20

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library November Programming Data % Change 2022-2023 9.71% 69.00% 45.40% -42.45% 29.37% Change 16.88% 22.70% 2067.83% 9.79% 64.65%

Programming Nov-23 486 458 506 61 1,511 Nov-23 17,608 4,810 9,907 628 32,953

Juvenile Programs Teen Programs Adult Programs Senior Programs Total Programs Juvenile Programs Teen Programs Adult Programs Senior Programs Total Attendance

Nov-22 443 271 348 106 1,168 Nov-22 15,065 3,920 457 572 20,014

1,207 247 57 1,511

Nov-22 924 219 25 1,168

% Change 2022-2023 30.63% 12.79% 128.00% 29.37%

22,546 9,942 465 32,953

Nov-22 15,599 7,520 945 24,064

% Change 2022-2023 44.53% 32.21% -50.79% 36.94%

Programming Nov-23 In Person Outreach Virtual Total Programs Programming Nov-23 In Person Outreach Virtual Total Attendance

PROGRAM AT TENDANCE BY AGE GROUP

PROGRAMS BY AGE GROUP Juvenile Programs

Teen Programs

Juvenile Programs

Teen Programs

Adult Programs

Senior Programs

Adult Programs

Senior Programs

1.91%

4.04%

9.08%

33.49%

29.79%

30.31%

23.20%

32.16%

37.93%

NOV-23

NOV-22

2.86% 2.28% 19.59%

30.06% 14.60%

75.27%

Library Programming

Library NO.

53.43%

NOV-23

Location Totals Outreach Virtual

Totals

NOV-22

Programs by Age Group Teen Adult

Juv

Senior

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

No.

Aud.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

ARCHIVES 0 0 BELLEVUE 65 1,158 BORDEAUX 60 653 BBTL (Bringing Bks to Life!) 3 6 BBTL (Adult Literacy) 10 391 DONELSON 26 356 EAST 53 875 EDGEHILL 28 382 EDMONDSON PIKE 70 975 GOODLETTSVILLE 35 475 GREEN HILLS 78 1,504 HADLEY PARK 19 39 HERMITAGE 46 1,498 INGLEWOOD 31 440 LOOBY 12 118 MADISON 59 707 MAIN - Adult Svcs 150 1,014 MAIN - Children Svcs 37 1,548 MAIN - Digital Inclusion 0 0 MAIN - LSDHH/Equal Access1 3 MAIN - Puppet Truck 0 0 MAIN - Special Coll. 10 323 MAIN - Studio NPL 145 648 MAIN - Teen Svcs 24 170 MAIN - Wishing Chair Productions 15 1107 NORTH 36 192 OLD HICKORY 19 359 PRUITT 47 5827 RICHLAND PARK 24 711 SOUTHEAST 78 811 THOMPSON LANE 21 211 WATKINS PARK 5 45 TOTALS 1,207 22,546

1 1 6 37 0 6 5 3 10 1 0 10 4 5 1 4 2 7 19 1 38 1 34 6 14 4 2 8 8 5 4 0 247

26 10 80 1,209 0 109 63 377 112 20 0 158 61 243 27 350 38 190 52 11 3,525 52 398 97 1967 32 105 110 247 150 123 0 9,942

0 0 0 36 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 3 0 0 0 0 57

0 0 0 80 26 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 41 8 0 0 3 0 0 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 44 240 0 0 0 0 465

1 66 66 76 14 32 58 31 80 37 78 29 51 38 13 63 153 44 19 6 38 11 179 30 29 40 26 58 32 83 25 5 1,511

26 1,168 733 1,295 417 465 938 759 1,087 498 1,504 197 1,600 691 145 1,057 1,055 1,738 52 34 3,525 375 1,046 267 3074 224 508 6177 958 961 334 45 32,953

0 17 15 31 0 12 14 25 20 11 16 18 21 22 8 28 0 43 0 1 31 2 2 0 23 27 15 31 17 23 10 3 486

0 475 139 1,169 0 312 249 373 703 216 453 145 915 627 96 906 0 1,708 0 11 3,209 32 35 0 1883 142 271 2004 855 439 224 17 17,608

0 33 37 0 0 1 44 0 22 7 36 0 4 0 0 18 0 0 0 1 2 0 177 30 0 1 1 0 6 33 3 2 458

0 552 517 0 0 15 689 0 77 69 931 0 56 0 0 73 0 0 0 3 122 0 1,011 267 0 5 9 0 14 343 29 28 4,810

1 15 10 45 14 19 0 6 28 17 21 11 24 16 4 11 153 1 0 4 3 9 0 0 5 12 10 20 8 27 12 0 506

26 131 60 126 417 138 0 386 195 190 97 52 607 64 22 68 1,055 30 0 20 128 343 0 0 1181 77 228 3933 73 179 81 0 9,907

0 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 10 2 5 0 2 0 1 6 0 0 19 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 7 1 0 0 0 61

0 10 17 0 0 0 0 0 112 23 23 0 22 0 27 10 0 0 52 0 66 0 0 0 10 0 0 240 16 0 0 0 628

Library Programming

Library NO.

Location Totals Outreach Virtual

Totals

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

ARCHIVES 0 0 MAIN - Adult Svcs 150 1,014 MAIN - Children Svcs 37 1,548 MAIN - LSDHH/Equal Access1 3 MAIN - Special Coll. 10 323 MAIN - Studio NPL 145 648 MAIN - Teen Svcs 24 170 MAIN - Wishing Chair Productions 15 1107 TOTALS 382 4,813

1 2 7 1 1 34 6 14 66

26 38 190 11 52 398 97 1967 2,779

0 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 5

0 3 0 20 0 0 0 0 23

No. 1 153 44 6 11 179 30 29 453

Programs by Age Group Teen Adult

Juv

Senior

Aud.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

NO.

AUD.

26 1,055 1,738 34 375 1,046 267 3074 7,615

0 0 43 1 2 2 0 23 71

0 0 1,708 11 32 35 0 1883 3,669

0 0 0 1 0 177 30 0 208

0 0 0 3 0 1,011 267 0 1,281

1 153 1 4 9 0 0 5 173

26 1,055 30 20 343 0 0 1181 2,655

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 10

*MN includes Studio and Wishing Chair, which hosts outreach events at other locations.

Statistical Summary – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library

PROGRAM TREND FY2324

FY2223

FY2122

FY2021

1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

J UL AUG S E P OCT N OV D EC JA N

F E B M A R A P R M AY J UN E

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE TREND FY2324

FY2223

FY2122

FY2021

35000 30000

25000 20000 15000

10000 5000 0

J UL AUG S E P OCT N OV D EC JA N

F E B M A R A P R M AY J UN E

Financial – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library

Personnel Summary/HR – December 12, 2023 2023 New Hires Name

Classification

Nikita Burns Trevor Kassis Wlliam Kirkpatrick Stuart Wilson Alyssa Lowery Kai Steward Tyler Sainato Helene Mahnken Rodney McDaniel Ali Graham Sandy Bouman

Office Support Rep Program Specialist 2 Program Supervisor Program Specialist 3 Library Associate Circulation Assistant Program Specialist 2 Program Specialist 2 Custodian Circulation Assistant Program Specialist 2

10/16/2023 10/16/2023 10/16/2023 10/30/2023 10/30/2023 11/13/2023 11/13/2023 11/27/2023 11/27/2023 11/27/2023 11/27/2023

2023 Promotions Name Forrest Eagle

Classification

Promotion Date

IS Media Analyst 3

Hire Date

Location

10/16/2023

LSHI(trans from Homeless Srvs) Richland Park(trans from Parks) Wishing Chair Studio NPL Madison Limitless Library Limitless Library Limitless Library Custodian Srvs(transfer from MAC) Main-Circ Sys Media Location Prod Services

2023 Resignations Name

Classification

Maria Prosser Onessia Head Samantha Schaumberg

Circulation Assistant Circulation Assistant Library Page

Resignation Date

10/25/2023 10/30/2023 11/14/2023

Location Green Hills Watkins Park Edmondson Pike

Personnel Summary/Vacancy – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library NPL Vacancies as of 11/30/23

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46

Division / Branch Title CONF CNTR ADMIN SVCS OFFICER 2 DIRECTOR ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIALIST LIMITLESS L APPLICATION TECH 1 OP & MAIN-MN BLDG MAINT MECH OP & MAIN-MN BLDG MAINT MECH BORDX CIRCULATION ASST CIRC CIRCULATION ASST EDGH CIRCULATION ASST MADISON CIRCULATION ASST SE CIRCULATION ASST WATKINS CIRCULATION ASST LIMITLESS L CIRCULATION ASST OP & MAIN-BR CUSTODIAN - Branch OP & MAIN-BR CUSTODIAN - Branch OP & MAIN-MN CUSTODIAN - Main ADMIN SVCS FINANCE OFFICER PROD SVCS INFO SYSTEMS MEDIA TECH 1 TALKING INFO SYSTEMS MEDIA TECH 1 ED PIKE LIBRARIAN 1 GRN HILLS LIBRARIAN 1 GRN HILLS LIBRARIAN 1 REF LIBRARIAN 1 BORDX LIBRARIAN 2 ED PIKE LIBRARIAN 2 MADISON LIBRARIAN 2 HERM LIBRARY ASSOC TEENS LIBRARY ASSOC BELLEVUE LIBRARY MGR 3 ED PIKE LIBRARY MGR 3 BELLEVUE LIBRARY PAGE ED PIKE LIBRARY PAGE GOOD LIBRARY PAGE HERM LIBRARY PAGE REF LIBRARY PAGE TALKING OFFICE SUPPORT REP ADMIN SVCS OFFICE SUPPORT SPEC 2 GRN HILLS PROGRAM SPEC 2 HR IMP PROGRAM SPEC 2 RICH PK PROGRAM SPEC 2 RICH PK PROGRAM SPEC 2 WISH CHAIR PROGRAM SUPV SECURITY SECURITY GUARD SECURITY SECURITY GUARD SECURITY SECURITY GUARD SECURITY SECURITY GUARD SECURITY SECURITY GUARD

Grade Name OR01 VACANT (COLLINS, D) ST11 VACANT (PHOUTHAVONG EVANS, M) ST07 VACANT (RADFORD, B) TG13 VACANT - NEW TG13 VACANT (ISLAM, M) ST05 VACANT (YEPREM, D) ST05 VACANT (AUERWECK, J) ST05 VACANT (MILLER, K) ST05 VACANT (MOORE, R) ST05 VACANT (GHOSH KUNDU, S) ST05 VACANT (HEAD, O) ST05 VACANT (THOMPSON, J) TG07 VACANT (BERTOLDI, L) TG07 VACANT (RIZAL, G) TG07 VACANT (PAISLEY, W) OR04 VACANT - NEW OR02 VACANT (LANDIS, R) OR02 VACANT - NEW ST09 VACANT (DELANEY, R) ST09 VACANT (KINZER, K) ST09 VACANT (SWAFFORD, C) ST09 VACANT (BARRETT, M) ST10 VACANT (PIPER, E) ST10 VACANT (WALKER, A) ST10 VACANT (KRAKOWIAK, P) ST06 VACANT (CROWDER, J) ST06 VACANT (ROMINES, J) OR07 VACANT (HERBST, L) OR07 VACANT (YOUNGBLOOD, K) ST02 VACANT (KASSIS, T) ST02 VACANT (BOTTEI, M) ST02 VACANT (OLEAS, F) ST02 VACANT (COOPER, J) ST02 VACANT (SCHUSTER, L) ST05 VACANT (ADKINS, M) ST08 VACANT (BRADY, G) ST06 VACANT (DANNER, A) OR01 VACANT - NEW ST07 VACANT (MCKINNEY, M) ST08 VACANT (WOLFENSOHN, M) ST10 VACANT (WILSON, B) ST06 VACANT - NEW ST06 VACANT (CLENDENING, D) ST06 VACANT (CONGIOLOSO, D) ST06 VACANT (DODSON, E) ST06 VACANT (MADU, O)

NOTE: Number does not include new Donelson positions that will not be available until January 2024

FPS F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F P F F F F F F F F F F F P P P P P F F F F F F F F F F F F

FTE Date Vacant Notes 1.00 7/14/23 1.00 12/12/22 1.00 9/6/23 1.00 7/1/22 Reposted 1.00 11/14/22 Reposted 1.00 10/30/23 1.00 1/9/23 1.00 9/16/23 1.00 5/31/23 1.00 6/12/23 1.00 10/30/23 1.00 5/26/23 Interviewing 1.00 7/24/23 Candidate starting in Dec 1.00 12/7/23 Interviewing 1.00 7/17/23 Interviewing 1.00 7/1/22 Reposted 1.00 7/26/23 0.49 7/1/22 1.00 6/1/22 1.00 11/17/22 1.00 9/18/23 1.00 9/30/22 1.00 9/18/23 1.00 9/18/23 1.00 4/30/23 1.00 8/2/23 Reposted 1.00 7/25/22 Reposted 1.00 12/27/22 Reposted 1.00 8/24/23 Reposted 0.49 8/17/23 Reposted 0.49 7/10/23 0.49 8/12/23 0.49 8/14/23 0.49 1/5/23 1.00 6/8/22 1.00 7/10/23 Interviewing 1.00 9/30/23 1.00 7/1/22 1.00 5/27/23 1.00 8/7/23 1.00 12/26/22 1.00 7/1/22 Reposted 1.00 7/10/23 Reposted 1.00 7/22/23 Reposted 1.00 5/15/23 Reposted 1.00 4/17/23 Reposted

Brief Area Updates – December 12, 2023 Nashville Public Library Administrative Services

Safety & Security: November 2023 November 2023 Safety and Security Month end report • • • •

4 afterhours events for the Special Collections division during November. The Annual Library Foundation GALA was held on Saturday November 4 requiring 3 Security officers for this event. Mark Crowder conducted 6 annual Safety and Security training classes at Branch locations during the month of November. 4 Security officer candidates were invited to and attended a walkthrough of the Main library to see if the job would be something that they would like to interview for the position. 3 of these 4 candidates still wanted to go through the interview process and 1 advised that she did not think this job would be a good fit for her. 2 of the 3 that were interviewed were recommended by the interview panel to go through the background check and possibly be offered a job.

Total number of incident reports for the month of November (58) and related categories per incident report down from 63 incident reports in October: Below is the number of incident Reports per Branch and then breakdown of each Branch: NOTE: Each report could have one or more conduct violations, a safety or security concern, and an injury or accident associated with the report which could or could not result in a suspension.

Number of Incident Reports per Branch Bellevue Branch

Main Library

Bordeaux Branch

North Branch

Donelson Branch

Richland Park Branch

Hadley Park Branch

Southeast Branch

Hermitage Branch

Thompson Lane Branch

Madison Branch

Total

Bellevue Branch

1 Main Library

Conduct or Rule Violation

Suspensions

Injury or Accident

Bordeaux Branch

Safety or Security Incident

Conduct or Rule Violation

Suspensions

Safety or Security Incident

2 North Branch

Suspensions

Hadley Park Branch

Safety or Security Incident

3 Richland Park Branch

Conduct or Rule Violation

Suspensions

1 Southeast Branch

Conduct or Rule Violation

Suspensions

Conduct or Rule Violation

10 Thompson Lane Branch

Suspensions

Injury or Accident

Safety or Security Incident

Hermitage Branch Conduct or Rule Violation Madison Branch

Number of Injury or Accident and Safety or Security Incidents 911 for assistance

Non Emergency

Ambulance

Patron Property Theft

Illness / Accident

Police called

Medical

Police Report Filed

Employee Property Theft

Property Damage / Vandalism

Library Property Theft

Safety Related

Number of Conduct or Rule Violations #1

#10

#11

#12

#13

#14

#7 #8

#17 2

#18

Suspensions

7 days

30 days

#19

60 days

#20

90 days

#21

180 days

#22

365 days

#15

#23

#16

Delivery: November 2023 Main: • • • •

We received 418 incoming UPS packages and sent 63 packages UPS GROUND. There were 86 overnight packages received from FedEx, DHL, etc. We received 64 inserts of mail from the United States Post Office, and we sent 53 inserts of mail to Metro Mail for postage. There were 51 special deliveries from Ricoh, Supply Room, Firefly, Amazon, etc.

Branches: •

We moved: 4,953 hold bins (158,496 items) 4,029 non-hold bins (128,928 items) 1,513 Circulation/Main bins (48,416 items). Total of 10,495 bins moved. Total item count of 335,840. An average of 583 bins and 18,658 items moved per day.

0 skids were sent to Pratt Industries for book recycling. 6 skids were sent to BWB. Daily Complete Percentage: Holds 18 of 18 days for 100% in November.

Facilities Maintenance: November 2023 Tamis work order report shows 268 work requests, 223 completed, 45 still active with an 84% completion rate for the month of October.

November 1st - November 30th 2023

Month

Total # Work Orders

# Completed

# Active

Completion %

None Entered

November 2023

Administration

November 2023

100%

Branch Custodial Services

November 2023

77%

Canceled

November 2023

100%

Contractor

November 2023

Grounds

November 2023

100%

Main Custodial Services November 2023

50%

Maintenance

173

151

88%

Active 45

Completion % 84%

Craft

November 2023

Quantity Completed 268 223 November Maintenance monthly report 2023: 158 work orders got completed with 3 employees: Mike Binkley 73 work orders Joe Foster 30 work orders Joe Klima 55 work orders Worked Gala event

Branch Services Fall Fun at the Library Fall always brings the opportunity for several fun community events. Every branch offered activities and participated in community events including: • • • • • • •

Branch book sales Artober arts and crafts programs Hispanic Heritage Month Dia de los Muertos Outreach events with local schools Firefighter Touch-a Truck events Participation in local festivals

Other Highlighted Events •

Bellevue Branch hosted Freddie O’Connell’s mayor transition team meeting on September 27.

•

Early voting continued into December. Green Hills and Hermitage Branches were the top two busiest early voting locations in Davidson County.

•

Ashley Walker-Tyler from Edgehill partnered with Book’em to request book donations for the Williamson Edmondson Festival on Oct 28. We received 200 books. We set up a table at the event with free book giveaways.

•

Edmondson Pike’s Marcia Fenn led the 3rd Annual Breast Cancer Walk on October 14th.

•

Green Hill’s Heidi Berg along with NPL and NPLF Board Member Kate Ezell and NPL Ambassador Brad Jones met with Council Members Tom Cash and Sandy Ewing to discuss Council support for the library and budget requests.

•

Hermitage held a Beatles Week in October which included a big outdoor concert featuring local cover band The English Rain and a viewing of the movie Help!

•

North Branch Library was a part of the North Nashville Open Streets, which included local businesses and organizations displaying information booths and other services.

•

Recently elected Council Members Rollin Horton and Brenda Gadd, met with Terri Luke and Manager Carlos Shivers to learn about Richland Park's programs, services, and statistical data. This meeting, facilitated by a Library's Advocacy Team member, was orchestrated to champion the cause for a new library building in the community.

•

North’s Cloreace W. Eppenger participated in Robert Churchwell Museum Magnet Elementary School’s Transformational Tuesday, an innovative means that allows Teachers to participate in professional development seminars without shutting down classrooms.

•

Pruitt and Hadley Park Branches continues to offer free haircut services to their patrons.

Building Updates The following locations received some updates to the buildings: • • • •

Bellevue Branch had new sound-absorbing panels installed New vinyl flooring was installed at the Hermitage Branch Inglewood Branch’s outside was freshly painted Thompson Lane’s sidewalks and ramps were repaved

Collections and Technology

Collections & Technology Board Report October-November 2023 Shared Systems • • •

• • •

Website translations to Spanish and Arabic continue with go-live forthcoming. Upgrading websites to Drupal 10. Ongoing work with Metro procurement to secure vendor agreements to continue supporting CONTENTdm, LibCal, LibStaffer, NPL Calendar software, and Pantheon. Staff continue to elevate the critical need for Pantheon procurement to be expedited because in February 2024 NPL and Limitless would lose websites, if not paid before then. Web team will assume management of Library Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing website in June 2024. Aspen upgraded to 23.11. Shared Systems continue to offer virtual “office hours” to answer staff questions for all systems.

NECAT October/November Quick View 10/7 Production 1 Class (10 people) 10/7 Celebrate Nashville Multicultural Festival Broadcast 10/15 Lighting & Green Screen Class (12 people) 10/31 One Year Plan Completed 11/3 Gangrene Live Show 11/4 Production 1 (10 people) 11/18 Audio class (7 People) 11/30 Production 2 (13 people) December 2023 Upcoming 12/2 Production 1 12/3 Editing Class 12/6 NECAT Board Meeting 12/8 Chinese New Year Walk Through Centennial Park 12/10 15 Movie Production in Studio 12/19 Sustainability Documentary Rough Cut 12/21 Member Meeting Holiday Party at NECAT Notable Television Airing 9/25 10/4 Nashville Film Festival Preview Aired Twice Daily on NECAT throughout the Fest. 10/7 Celebrate Nashville Live Stream On all three channels.

11/3 Dr Gangrene Halloween Marathon 11/4 NPLF Award Public Lecture.

Membership October

November

New Members

People in Production 1

People in Production 2

N/A

People in Specialty Class

Equipment Checkouts

Studio Usage October

November

Blocks Booked

Time in Hours

Blocks Booked

Time in Hours

Producer Led Productions

125

100

NECAT Productions/Staff working Days

Meetings/Tours

Trainings

Editing Bay Usage

Holiday Closures

Cancelations

Kiosk Check-Ins October

November

Number of People

Production

265

230

Class

Meeting

Reason

Tour

Event

Editing

Other

Total

322

287

October

November

NPL Programming Run Time

12681.18 Minutes

13186.98 Minutes

MTSU Programming Run Time

6705.12 Minutes

7056.15 Minutes

New First Run Programs

New First Run Episodes

New NPL Carousel Bulletins

New Carousel Bulletins

Network Content

Collections •

Received two very nice customer compliments. “Congratulations on having an Amharic book with correct Ethiopic script display in the catalog! I was impressed when I saw this in your catalog: "ፈዋሿ ድመት". Keep up the good work!” and the second compliment: “I just wanted to say while I haven’t fully used monthly credits yet I absolutely love the Kanopy service, it has a number of films I’m interested in as well as exposing me to several I didn’t know I was interested in. Please don’t get rid of this service for library members anytime soon, it’s another fantastic service offered by the Nashville Library!”

•

In collaboration with NPL Sustainability Committee and the Cumberland River Compact, will add several new nature kits for children. All pack contents would be in a medium-sized backpack. Each backpack would have a welcome sheet with instructions, activity ideas, and a QR code that can be used to tell us about their adventure. Topics: Insect Exploration, Creek Exploration, Urban Hike, Tree Exploration.

•

Working on Opening Day Collection for new Donelson Branch.

•

New Adult Kurdish Collection now circulating at the Edmondson Pike Branch Library. This start-up collection includes over 120 books as well as bound newspaper clippings.

Oct New Circulation User category Digital Physical Totals = Format Digital

# of Unique Users

Items checked out

42,813 22,526

267,751 140,898*

65,339 Oct New Acquisitions Copies added 7,036

408,649

Physical

7,124 14,160

Totals =

Nov New Circulation User category

Items checked out

# of Unique Users

Digital

42,825

261,442

Physical

20,246

123,510*

63,071 Nov New Acquisitions Copies added 5,555

384,952

Totals = Format Digital Physical Totals =

5,225 10,780

*Physical checkout statistics do not include renewals as this report is used by Material Services to determine the demand for content, not how long customers want to borrow the content.

Production Services ➢ Production services provided AV support for 45 requests around NPL. ➢ Live Events • 13 - Conference Center events with AV support. • 6 - Branch events. • 8 - Podcast sessions • 5 - Filming sessions • 2 - Maintenance Requests ➢ NPLU Filming Schedule • 5 - Videos Recorded for staff and Conference Center Events • 3 - Videos published on NPL Universe • 3 - Livestreams • 4 - Hybrid meetings facilitated

➢ NPLU Stats • 11k channel wide views • 4.6k hours of watch time • 2 hours and 46 Minutes of Captioned Content ➢ Podcasts • Recorded 11 new episodes – Family Folktales, Truth B Told, & From Matthew Pritchett. • Completed edits for 10 episodes. • 6 Published episodes. ➢ Upcoming Projects • Captioner position filled – Sandy Bouman • New Wishing Chair video series in production – Should begin airing late December • Centennial Park ”Necat Talks with Chinese New Year” February 10th • LEGO award Ceremony booked for February 17th • Ongoing Production Tech Interviews – 2 hires starting in January • Integrating “Your Mind Matter’s” events into Podcast • String City booked for March 1st

Technology ❖ Security Camera - Additions ▪ Edgehill – Quoted – Approved – Waiting Installation ▪ Old Hickory – Quoted – Approved – Installed ▪ Hermitage – Quoted – Approved – Waiting Installation ▪ Goodlettsville – Quoted – Approved – Waiting Installation ▪ Inglewood – Quoted – Approved – Waiting Installation ❖ E-Rate – AT&T Circuit Upgrades ➢ Main ADI Internet Circuit ▪ Meeting to discuss migration – Complete ▪ Implementation – Complete ❖ Branch Phone Replacements ▪ Edmondson Pike - Complete ▪ Green Hills - Complete ▪ Bellevue - Complete ▪ Hermitage – Complete ❖ Catalog Computers – Low Vision Adjustments ▪ Adding ability for patrons with low vision to magnify the screen • Will complete in 2nd week December

❖ INK Completed 1. 2. 3. 4.

Conversion of OSO program for new Metro requirements Test photo staff directory site Repaired notifications for INK announcements Converting video format for NPL Board videos

Current ➢ Updating templates for policy and procedure forms ➢ Updating OSO procedures to follow new Metro requirements ➢ Continue development work for photo staff directory ➢ Researching the creation an announcement feature on the “modern” site

Education and Literacy EDUCATION & LITERACY OCTOBER 2023 Adult Literacy at NPL – Jamil Sameen The big focus for October was planning the Fall Adult Education Symposium, which will happen November 14 at the Main Library. The Adult Literacy team will provide an update on GOAL Collective, and feature presentations on diversity in Adult Education, student retention and a panel of ESL students who have recently arrived. October was a busy month for presentations and community outreach. The Adult Literacy staff gave the Branch of Nashville staff a library tour, including thorough information on the Adult Literacy Program and NPL services. With her new work as a career coach, the ESL instructor found the tools at NPL to be amazing, allowing her to serve her students more successfully. The result of this tour was that Adult Literacy will provide a 4-part digital skills class for the Branch of Nashville’s students. These four consecutive classes will be offered on a weekly basis at the Branch of Nashville location on Monday mornings, beginning November 20th. Adult Literacy staff also provided tours to American Job Center staff and Metro Action Commission staff and discussed how NPL and Adult Literacy can support their staff and clients. The mobile lab served 34 learners in October, and class attendees continue to express gratitude for the excellent service and abilities they gained from attending digital computer skills lessons. 41 new NPL cards were issued to students. Adult Literacy staff presented 101 Library workshops virtually to ESL student at MNPS’s LEAF program, and in-person to Conéxion Americas and the Room in the Inn students, totaling 55 adult learners in attendance. Adult Literacy staff participated in several community events: a Hispanic Heritage celebration event at Amqui Station, the GOAL Collective networking luncheon, the College and Career Fair at the Bass Adult Learning Center, and the TIRRC and Treat fall event in Mill Ridge Park, which was attended by approximately 300 people. NashvilleHelps.com had 20 requests in October. The National Alliance on Mental Illness is a new partner on Nashvillehelps.com. The staff Adult Education program specialist got certified as a Workplace Excellence trainer. Later this winter, AL will provide an opportunity for others in the adult education community to be certified, which focuses on building soft skills in adult learners to help with employability. Be Well at NPL – Bassam Habib In the month of October, Be Well provided 184 wellness programs, with 92 physical activity classes, 50 mental health classes, and 42 nutrition, information, and garden education classes.

100% of participants surveyed were satisfied or very satisfied with the program they attended and 98% indicated they would return for other Be Well programs. Be Well’s meditation classes have been particularly popular, with staff and patrons in attendance, and the program now has a weekly sound bath session and meditation across all 21 branches. Be Well coordinated a community garden at Edmondson Pike with the Nashville Food Project, Grateful Gardeners, and Edmonson Pike staff and community leading the design and planning process of the garden. Bassam Habib is also in the process of getting Edmonson Pike certified as a level 2 arboretum through the Urban Forestry Council. Be Well is working with the Tennessee Disability Coalition to bring the Disability Etiquette booklet and literacy across branches. Bassam Habib attended various trainings this month, including “Navigating Food Insecurities: Understanding the Complexities of the Food Environment,” “Effective Health Communication and Health Literacy,” “Neurodiversity, Invisible Disability, and Unconscious Bias: The Primary Obstacle of Neuroinclusion at the Library,” “Harm Reduction in Action: Language as Harm Reduction” (offered by NNLM), and Open Table's “Winter Outreach Training,” which focused on programming across the city for the houseless population. Be Well, NNLM, All of Us, and NPLF met this month to discuss grant funding and partnership opportunities. Be Well welcomed the Health Department to conduct a Community Health Inclusion Assessment at Main Branch, where they determined that the only obstacles the branch dealt with were accessibility and language barriers. Be Well distributed COVID test packages across all 21 branches. Be Well and NPLF submitted a Blue Cross Blue Shield grant application for $5,000. Be Well added four new programmers this month, including Love Learning Music Therapy, Whitney Jenkins— a stretching and yoga facilitator working with BIPOC— Empowerment Club at Edmonson Pike, and Roberta White— a breast and cervical cancer screening facilitator. Bringing Books to Life! – Liz Atack BBTL led 73 programs with 1,038 in attendance in October: 32 story time programs, 30 COACH sessions, 9 Loving & Learning family workshops, and 2 teacher workshops. The BBTL team sent letters to partner sites to advertise BBTL’s next featured Puppet Truck show, Lorraine: The Girl Who Sang the Storm Away. At the same time, BBTL advertised immersive Holiday story times (children learn about various winter holidays and get to play in a

village with houses to represent them all) and quickly booked all available slots in November and December. Staff are in the final stages of preparing the curriculum materials for Lorraine. Curriculum kits will start being delivered to sites in mid-December. BBTL staff began to plan for a series of nature-themed teacher workshops in the spring with special guest speakers. The first workshop will feature Ashley Brailsford, PhD of Unearthing Joy who will present on multicultural children’s literature and incorporating nature into the classroom. BBTL staff represented BBTL/ NPL at several community events, including Church Street Park’s Fall Festival, Amqui Station’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebration and Kirkpatrick Community Center’s Toddler Tuesday Fall Ball. BBTL staff also presented a special spooky story time at the Goodlettsville Library. BBTL kicked off a holiday book giveaway on Instagram featuring some new fall and winter holiday books that were included in the October community teacher workshop. The goal is to grow BBTL’s social media following and to encourage teachers to try some new and different books in the classroom. Digital Inclusion – Marian Christmon The Digital Inclusion team spent most of October helping with the Affordable Connectivity Program Awareness and Enrollment Initiative. Danny Oliver and Cheryl Hadley helped at the Edmonson Pike, Edgehill, Old Hickory, East, North, Watkins Park and Southeast branches. The team also partnered with MNPS schools during Parent Conference Day, setting up booths at Lawson High, Antioch Middle and Hayward Elementary schools. Digital Inclusion was invited to participate in the annual Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition’s “TIRRC or Treat” event and sponsored an ACP booth at Mill Ridge Park for the event.

Digital Inclusion attended several local and national ACP meetings, including the ALA ACP Outreach Grant - Libraries Meet Up, the State Broadband ACP Grant meeting, the FCC ACP Grantee meeting and the NDIA Leveraging Your ACP Outreach Grant meeting. Marian Christmon attended the Digital Skills, Education and Workforce Development Program webinar, where the state presented and overview of the grant opportunity for libraries and nonprofits in Tennessee. Digital Inclusion will be submitting a grant proposal by December 2023. The Senior Community Service Employment Program that Digital Inclusion collaborated with at NCOA will now be conducted in Nashville by Workforce Essentials. The Digital Inclusion team met with the Workforce Essentials coordinator to discuss continuing the Workforce Training Program for seniors that was previously held at NCOA. Finally, staff held a class on the library’s online apps at the Senior Renaissance Center. Limitless Libraries – Syreeta Butler COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer placed December prepublication orders, worked on bulk orders for the upcoming months, and compiled and submitted individual school orders based off Schoology submissions. Sarah Allen, Emily Farmer, and Jane Miller tracked and documented vendor issues that included missing books and missing shipments and worked with vendors to rectify each situation. COMMITTEE/GROUP PARTICIPATION Syreeta Butler was afforded the opportunity to attend the 2023 Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services Conference at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey, PA as a guest of Matthew Specialty Vehicles, who is manufacturing NPL’s bookmobile. Syreeta met one-on-one with the Matthew Specialty Vehicle team to discuss NPL’s bookmobile being the featured vehicle at the 2024 ABOS Conference which will be held in Indianapolis, IN. Syreeta also met with other bookmobile manufacturers and explored varied types of outreach vehicles. Emily Farmer attended the monthly Teen Services Group and Summer Reading Committee meetings, and Sarah Allen attended the monthly Children Services Group meeting. OUTREACH Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer met with MNPS Library Services team to discuss weeding materials needed for their professional development training which led to weeding reports being

run for every school librarian in preparation for their Karen Lowe – Collection Assessment Workshop. Syreeta Butler and Emily Farmer attended the MNPS professional development day. While there, Limitless Libraries was awarded an $8,671.41 check from the Greater Nashville Chinese Alliance for purchase of Asian American and Pacific Islander materials for MNPS libraries. Sarah Allen presented a Career Talk for second graders at Dan Mills Elementary. Emily Farmer represented Limitless Libraries at the Madison Branch Hispanic Heritage Month Festival that was held in conjunction with Amqui school. Syreeta Butler attended the GOAL Collective Networking Luncheon along with other departments within NPL’s Education and Literacy group. Sarah Allen met with the new school librarian at Explore! Community School to discuss their addition to Limitless Libraries services, funding, collection development, and their new library space. Syreeta Butler, Sarah Allen, Emily Farmer, and James Staub of Shared Systems met with Selena Harmon, Assistant Director of the Holston River Regional Library to discuss Limitless Libraries functionality and implementation of replica services in their area. Sarah Allen, Syreeta Butler, and Emily Farmer attended and facilitated the MNPS Library Services weekly office hours and shared information about the Gaylord ICE Cool Reader collaboration with NPL and answered questions about services and issues. Syreeta Butler represented NPL at the MNPS Career Exploration Fair held at the Music City Center alongside Teen and Studio NPL department employees. STAFF UPDATES Syreeta Butler, Emily Farmer, and Stephanie Ruhl of Main Circulation conducted 2nd Interviews for vacant Circulation Assistant positions and interviewed 4 candidates. Kai Steward was selected for the Limitless Libraries Circulation Assistant position and will begin on Monday, November 13, 2023. Syreeta Butler, Sarah Allen, Emily Farmer, and Allison Price of MarCom conducted interviews for the full and part time Outreach Specialist positions and interviewed 8 candidates. Tyler Sainato, currently a MNPS school librarian, was offered and accepted the full-time position and will begin her new role on Monday, November 3, 2023. Helene Mahnken, current volunteer at the Donelson Branch Library, was offered and accepted the part-time position and will begin her new role on Monday, November 27, 2023.

OTHER NOTABLE ACTIVITIES Carolyn Johnson and Mary Agresta, Circulation Assistants, assisted the Nashville Public Library Foundation with the dissemination of 8,899 Kate DiCamillo Literary Award book donations that were sent to 46 MNPS elementary, middle, specialty, and charter schools. Syreeta Butler counted and sorted 7,000 bookmarks, 6,000 vouchers, and 100 flyers from Gaylord ICE Cool Reader collaboration with NPL for 82 MNPS elementary and charter schools and 21 NPL branches. CIRCULATION STATS There were 8,274 items circulated through Limitless Libraries which used 1,731 green bags, 327 gray bins, 56 book trucks returned from MNPS, and 52 book trucks sent to MNPS. NAZA – Anna Harutyunyan In October, nine professional development workshops were held, with a total of 86 registrants.* 1,288 youth enrolled in afterschool programs. Lights On Afterschool took place on Thursday, October 26. This is a nationwide celebration of afterschool programs and the impact they have on youth in our communities. Several NAZA partners hosted community events showcasing their programs. Mayor Freddie O’Connell also issued a proclamation declaring October 26th Lights On Afterschool Day in Nashville. *Vickie Starks was on leave most of the month so final attendance numbers haven’t been recorded

for all of the events.

Puppet Truck – William Kirkpatrick Since starting as the new Puppet Truck Supervisor, Williams Kirkpatrick and the Puppet Truck staff have had great responses from different locations through the transitions. The shows at the Tennessee State Museum for their Haunted Museum celebration were well received. The Puppet Truck team have also acquired some new fans of the program and are getting Nashville newcomers excited about visiting the branches around Davidson County and checking out books as they come to experience the shows. William Kirkpatrick has started training another puppeteer for driving the trucks and has become acquainted with recent truck repair needs. In October, the Puppet Truck team performed a total of 69 shows at 51 different locations with a total of 4,988 people in attendance at local schools, daycares, and community events.

A patron that attended a show this month shared the following experience: “I was able to watch the puppet show at the Maddox YMCA school with my 3-year-old. He was scared of the show, and we had to stand off to the side while he covered his ears. Eventually, he got more comfortable and was really interested in what [William] and David explained afterward. A couple of days later, all on his own he started talking about puppets. He stuck some sticks through a leaf and was telling me all about how it worked. He talked about how the tool bars moved different parts of the leaf puppet! I had to sneak a photo so that I would remember to tell you! What you showed them really stuck with him!” Wishing Chair Productions – Bret Wilson Wishing Chair Productions conducted 15 in person Storytimes and 29 presentations in the children’s theater for a total of 44 performances with an audience count of 2,829 participants. Wishing Chair welcomed the following elementary schools and organizations to the children’s theater for private mainstage performances during the month of October: Tusculum Elementary, Charlotte Park Elementary, Fall Hamilton Elementary, Una Elementary, Ruby Majors Elementary, Brookdale @ Belle Meade, Akiva School, Charra Homeschool, TN School for the Blind, and Friends Life Community. In October, Wishing Chair offered a quadruple lineup of seasonal tales: First - Wishing Chair Productions presents an exhibition of unusual happenings and unexplained tales from across the state. Families can immerse themselves in the season of Halloween with our seven-part series. Available on YouTube or can be viewed on the television outside the children's theater. Second – The classic Brothers Grimm tale is told with the charming Peeko Puppets. Be enchanted as two siblings face challenges that test their courage in difficult times.

Third – Author Jules Verne, best known for his novels 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Journey to the Center of the Earth penned this short story that has adapted for the 8 and up crowd! One puppeteer tells the dark tale of a bitter old Doctor who in the end learns a valuable lesson.

Fourth – Wishing Chair had its first joint Visual Art Exhibit/ Performance in the children’s theater. Wishing Chair’s partnership with the Illustration and Graphics students at Watkins College at Belmont University was held every Friday and Saturday during the run of Trifulgas.

The doors to the children’s theater will open at 4:00 PM so audiences can experience eight visual works inspired by the dark tale. Early this month, Wishing Chair Productions hosted another private performance for a visiting Sister Cites group from Magdeburg, Germany. The team was able to arrange a private performance of Hansel and Gretel in the main auditorium, demonstrate how the puppets work, answer questions, and offer a tour of the puppet storage room. The hour-long experience was enjoyed by all.

Wishing Chair team members completed new video concepts for NECAT and the NPL Universe on October 31st. The segments will air in December and January when most staff will be on vacation.

New Segments from Wishing Chair Productions New puppet segments from Brian Waltman/Sally Bebawy – Original Story entitled Two Little Puppies, Zapped and Beautiful U New puppet music video by Evelyn O’Neal Bandit Face, What's For Lunch and Coco's Fashion Showcase New puppet comedy sketch by William Kirkpatrick New puppet segment by Pete Carden – In the Kitchen with Tommy Dog New puppet segment by Noel Williams – Magic Stick Girl Part 1 and 2 and The Journey of a Book New puppet segment collaboration Silly Grandpa – Popcorn/Monkeys New opening by Bret Wilson, Steve Stokes, and Production Services Studio NPL – Niq Tognoni In October, Niq Tognoni interviewed and brought on a handful of new mentors. Many of them have limited availability, but will be helpful with the mobile lab and with introducing patrons to new skills. Niq Tognoni also hired a full-time technical coordinator, Stuart Wilson, who will keep Studio technology in order, run 3D printing initiatives, manage the ordering and purchase order budgets, and will take the lead on staff trainings and all-ages and adult programs in 2024. Historically, October is one of Studio’s busiest outreach months, and this year was no exception. Studio staff served 1,126 patrons between school and community center visits and across several community events, including the Nashville Mini Maker Faire, Tennessee Craft Fair, and Nashville Zine Fest. These events are great for meeting new patrons, but also for connecting with other community organizations and exploring future partnerships. The greatest highlight for an outstanding month was the success of Studio’s very first fall break “intensive.” In response to a challenge to get more teens into Studio spaces during breaks, Studio staff created a 5-day “worldbuilding” program that combined elements of role-playing games, Fantasy Fiction books and media, 3D printing, cardboard construction, photography, and more. A cohort of 10 worked with staff daily to design, build and eventually “play” role playing characters, building their costumes and accessories with Studio mentors. The teens came from all over the city, and all asked to do another intensive on future breaks and during the summer (the Studio team already has one tentatively signed up for the next Music Intensive in June 2024). Finally, Studio NPL received financial support from Apple and Comcast this month, as well as a small donation from TN Craft Fair to support program supplies and mentor hours at their event.

EDUCATION & LITERACY NOVEMBER 2023 Adult Literacy at NPL – Jamil Sameen The annual Adult Education Fall Symposium was held at the Main Library on November 14th, and 81 people registered for the event. Speakers presented on inclusive excellence, the adult education learning ecosystem throughout Tennessee, and championing retention. Nashville International Center for Empowerment organized a panel of ESL students to share their perspectives on the adult education experience and community partners held a resource fair. According to a post-conference survey, the adult education community in Davidson County and the surrounding area thought this conference was a fantastic place to network and learn new things. The Adult Literacy team is already planning the Spring Summit, which will likely happen in May 2024 and will feature the Adult Educator of the Year Award.

Adult Literacy staff continued to provide fieldtrip tours of the main library to the ESL students and staff of the Branch of Nashville. Thirteen individuals attended a Saturday tour. The newcomers were astonished with the services at NPL, especially the children’s services and puppet shows. All of them experienced the puppet show on that day. Adult Literacy also began a series on computer basic skills offered on Mondays to the same ESL class, using one of the mobile labs. Students learned basic computer skills and used them in email communication with their teacher and when applying for jobs. Career coaching on basic job searches, creating resumes and applying for jobs online, and improving soft skills were presented and taught to attendees. Belmont University career center participated in one of the classes, and their staff provided extra resources and guidance. In collaboration with the Rooms at the Inn, Adult Literacy staff presented 101 Library workshops and computer basic skills class to their ESL student in-person. A total of 22 adult learners attended. The mobile labs served 32 learners this month. Users reported learning new skills and awareness about cyber security, and 14 new NPL cards were issued to students.

Adult Literacy staff presented to Belmont University College of Education students and provided detailed information about the services of the Adult Literacy program. One of the students inquired about the role and the effectiveness of the visual presentation in the field of adult literacy. NashvilleHelps.com had 34 requests in November. Adult Literacy joined Coalition for Better Futures in Southeast Nashville. The Coalition for Better Futures in Southeast Nashville is an informal association of interested and motivated citizens collaborating on strategies and programs to help more neighbors in southeast Nashville thrive. Be Well at NPL – Bassam Habib Be Well is working with staff at Edmonson Pike, The Nashville Food Project Gardeners, Master Gardeners of Davidson County, and the Grateful Gardner for planning, building, and planting a community garden. This will be the biggest community garden at any branch so far (1,600 sq.ft. with 5 beds). There are five staff members at Edmondson Pike working on the garden project, and both staff and community members will be maintaining the space. After the garden is in place, Be Well will certify the Edmonson Pike branch as a level 2 arboretum through the TN Urban Forestry Council. Realistically Fed's breastfeeding and lactation counseling classes have now expanded to Bordeaux, with classes offered in Spanish at Madison, English at Inglewood, Main, and Edmondson Pike, and Arabic at Thompson Lane. This program sees around 40-50 people per class. Be Well's new partners this month include Martha O'Brien Center, VUMC Medical Center, TN Disability Coalition, and Carrie Mae Williams Center. Be Well met with VUMC's Marketing Director this month to discuss having orthopedics, brain health, heart health, eye and dental, and more across the library system. This would accompany the Medline Plus Kiosks that should roll out beginning February of next year. The goal is to have a community group of physicians, psychologists, and health care providers meet in NPL spaces to be able to provide free education and literacy to branch communities. Bassam Habib is working to create a meditation syllabus for all 21 branches. This is supported by Jo-Jo Jackson and Jennifer Wang, both being meditation therapists that have a long history of providing meditation programming at NPL and in Nashville. Be Well is working with the Main branch librarians to bring life coaching and reengagement workers to the 3rd floor to anyone who needs it. This month Be Well communicated with Project Return to offer services for those who have been recently incarcerated.

Be Well requested 1,800 COVID test kits from the Metro Health Department to distribute across NPL branches for free. Bringing Books to Life! – Liz Atack BBTL completed 76 programs with 1,295 in attendance. November was a big month for staff professional development. The entire BBTL staff attended the National Association for the Education of Young Children Annual Conference, which was held at Music City Center November 15 – 19. Staff attended author/ illustrator sessions as well as sessions on literacy, arts education, music, and the importance of play presented by practitioners and researchers from around the world. NAEYC is the major professional organization and conference for early childhood educators, and BBTL is grateful to have found funding from NPLF that made it possible for everyone to attend. Staff also attended a lunch and learn at Peabody to hear about new research on the impact of book distribution programs and dialogic reading. Liz Atack and Marie Preptit, along with Linda Harrison, attended the School Board Conference on November 14th where NPL was recognized for its role in the Books Brothers video collaboration with My Brothers Keeper - Nashville, United Way, and Nashville Soccer Club/ Ingram. The videos, which feature local men of color reading books aloud, have been fully incorporated into MNPS’s literacy curriculum and will be experienced by students throughout the year. NPL selected books, organized filming, and NPL’s Production Services filmed, edited and posted the video on YouTube. BBTL is thrilled that this project continues to support Nashville’s children! BBTL onboarded a new school, Old Center Elementary in Goodlettsville. The two pre-K classrooms in the school are now BBTL partners. For November and December, BBTL offered immersive play holiday story times to centers. After learning about winter holiday celebrations from around the world (Christmas, Hannukah, Three Kings Day, Chinese New Year, Ramadan, St. Lucia Day, etc.), children get to play in a village where each house represents one holiday. Props allow children to reenact the stories and explore traditions. Before Thanksgiving, all available slots for these story times were booked up until December 22.

Digital Inclusion – Marian Christmon Digital Inclusion team held outreach and enrollment activities for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) again this month. The team provided an ACP resource table at the Adult Literacy Fall Symposium to provide information for organizations that attended. Information and enrollment assistance was also provided at Riverwood Towers, Radnor Towers, Hadley Park Community Center, Matthew Walker, and Leah Rose.

Digital Inclusion staff was busy working with partners to prepare schedules for 2024. For the first time, classes will be hosted at some of the library branches for seniors. Scheduling is in the works at the Bordeaux, Madison and Looby branches. If the program successfully recruits seniors at those locations, other library branches will be scheduled for Senior Tech training sites. The benefit of hosting the program at library sites for seniors is that they do not have to be patrons of one of the organizations that we partner with. Studio NPL and Digital Inclusion are working together to plan next summer’s program. The photographer of this year’s seniors graduation event was so impressed by the program that she wants to work together again. She sent a photography learning module for us to consider adding to the program. During the summer intergenerational program Cyber-Seniors, the team reserved time for the teens to enhance their digital skills when they were not working with the seniors. Studio NPL provided activities for the teens during this time and this is where the photography module would be added. Digital Inclusion completed first round of interviews for temporary part-time staff funded by ACP and Training Opportunities for the Public (TOP) grants. ACP temp staff will perform outreach activities and TOP grant temp will assist with teaching Digital Literacy classes.

Limitless Libraries – Syreeta Butler COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer placed bulk orders per tier for the upcoming months, compiled and submitted individual school orders based off Schoology submissions, and placed orders for January prepublication materials. Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer fielded numerous informational requests and ran reports and weeding lists for MNPS librarians to use at their Karen Lowe professional development training. Sarah Allen, Syreeta Butler, Emily Farmer, and Jane Miller worked together on addressing vendor issues regarding shipping delivery errors, electronic data interchange corrections, and MARC record delivery issues. Jane Miller ran the in-processing report multiple times per week to resolve missing item issues. Emily Farmer completed the High School Battle of the Books orders. COMMITTEE/GROUP PARTICIPATION/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Syreeta Butler attended the 2023 Tennessee Association of School Librarians Conference in Murfreesboro, TN, NPL’s Managers meeting, and the NPL Board Special Meeting where she gave a public comment. Emily Farmer attended the monthly Summer Reading Committee meeting. Sarah Allen attended the monthly Children Services Group meeting. Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer both worked on completing their mandatory Metro HR trainings. OUTREACH Syreeta Butler facilitated the Middle School Battle of the Books Captains meeting with cofacilitators Sarah Allen and Emily Farmer. Limitless Libraries hosted the MNPS Library Services Office Hours. Sarah Allen visited Dan Mills Elementary and read new picture books to classes.

Tyler Sainato and Helene Mahnken visited 7 MNPS schools to converse with them about needs, support, and assistance, as well as discuss training opportunities and curriculum development opportunities. STAFF UPDATES Limitless Libraries welcomed 3 new employees: Kai Steward – Circulation Assistant, Tyler Sainato – Outreach Specialist, and Helene Mahnken – part-time Outreach Specialist. Syreeta Butler interviewed 3 out of 7 applicants for the open Application Technician position. It is anticipated that Limitless Libraries will be fully staffed in December once a selection has been made to fill the position. OTHER NOTABLE ACTIVITIES Limitless Libraries received the Tennessee Association of School Librarians Presidential Award. Limitless Libraries received a monetary donation of $8,671.41 from the Greater Nashville Chinese Alliance to purchase Asian American and Pacific Islander materials for MNPS libraries. Limitless Libraries received an additional monetary donation of $3,591.42 from Greater Nashville Chinese Alliance to purchase Asian American and Pacific Islander materials MNPS libraries. CIRCULATION STATS There were 9,365 items circulated through Limitless Libraries which used 1,838 green bags, 352 gray bins, 50 book trucks returned from MNPS, and 47 book trucks sent to MNPS. NAZA – Anna Harutyunyan NAZA provided one training in November on Fundraising 101 for Non-Fundraisers focusing on Events and Sponsorships. NAZA Youth have been working to organize “Holidays at Hadley,” a free all youth-led community event that will take place on Wednesday, December 20 from 3-7 PM at Hadley Park Community Center. There will be winter-themed activities, a resource fair, and more. NAZA Youth Community Leaders reviewed applications for youth-led projects and determined funding for 16 projects.

Under the grant from Wallace Foundation, NAZA is piloting three initiatives that focus on youth development for system-impacted youth. A program is being offered inside the detention center in partnership with Juvenile Court. Another pilot prep was finalized in November to start in January for court supervised girls (on-probation). Lastly, we have finalized a selection for a youth mentorship program at Johnson Alternative Learning Center in partnership with MNPS and the LAC leadership. Puppet Truck – William Kirkpatrick November was very smooth for Puppet Truck. William Kirkpatrick was able to get one puppeteer to complete their truck driver training and on the road as a true Puppet Trucker. The Puppet Truck team added a new location their growing roster. V.J. Clark sent feedback to the team regarding a puppet show they requested at Greater St. John Missionary Baptist Church on November 18th: ”Good morning, William, Saturday’s Puppet Show presentation at Greater St. John M. B. Church was fantastic! The kids, big and small, were spell bound and engaged throughout the entire time. Your co-workers and fellow puppeteers did an exceptional job presenting the show and explaining the details of what to expect throughout the presentation. The kids also enjoyed sharing their thoughts and asking questions during Q&A. William, thanks again to you, your team and the Nashville Public Library for your willingness and commitment to serve the communities both near and far. Well done! V.J. Clark” Wishing Chair Productions – Bret Wilson Wishing Chair Productions conducted 9 in-person Storytimes, 9 presentations in the Children’s Theater, and 6 performances in November at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum for a total of 24 performances with an audience count of 2,784 participants.

Wishing Chair invited The Village – Homeschool Group and Paragon Mills to the Children’s Theater for private mainstage performances during the month of November and welcomed private group performances with CMHoFM for Ravenwood Elementary, Granbery Elementary, Rosebank Elementary, Christ the King, and Fifty Forward - Donelson, to name a few.

Audiences welcomed the return of Ellingtown. This presentation will be offered in the Children’s Theater during the month of November and December. The Production Team responsible for the creation of La La La offered one performance at the 2023 Nashville Public Library Public Lecture and two VIP Premiere performances at the Gala Reception. Over the past few months, Nikki Wilson, Sophia Winter, Galen Fott and Bret Wilson worked endlessly to craft a story that captures the essence of Kate DiCamillo’s story. Earlier in the month, the Chamber Orchestra from Montgomery Bell Academy came to the

children’s theater to record the soundtrack for La La La: A Story of Hope, Original Composition by Sophia Winter.

On behalf of the NPL and NPLF, Bret Wilson presented Kate DiCamillo with her very own copy of the La La La puppet at the 2023 NPLF Gala on behalf of the Nashville Public Library, Nashville Public Library Foundation and Wishing Chair Productions.

Wishing Chair Productions offered its second run of the 10th Anniversary version of String City at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. During the week run, the cast was fortunate to meet the granddaughter and great grandson of Eddy Arnold. They attended both the 9:30 AM and 11:00 AM performances and raved about the experience.

Adjustments to the show needed to be made due to the death of Wishing Chair’s lighting technician, Thom Roberts, and the retirement of Brian and Mary Hull. The original lighting designer, Scott Leathers, was reinstated to the cast along with Brian Waltman as an assistant. Bret Wilson switched over to Brian’s track of the show and Noel Williams learned Mary’s portion. The run was very successful and members of CMHoFM are eternally grateful to have this partnership. As they stated on many occasions, “It’s our favorite time of the year when String City comes.”

Studio NPL – Niq Tognoni The Studio NPL team explored a variety of partnerships in November, including meeting with Greater Nashville Technology Council to plan a summer activity day for their youth participants, “Music for Seniors” to brainstorm a series of cross-generational programming, Southern Word to plan a series for a college-aged cohort at Studio NPL, and Digital Inclusion to work through a collaborative summer program utilizing their “Cyber Seniors” cohort. Along with regular branch and Main programs, Studio NPL hosted the Southern Word fall “Write with Pride” program and the Youth Poet Laureate Semi-Finals with a full-house of allages audience members and guest judges. Studio NPL also hosted a recording studio session for a couple classrooms of 2nd grade students who used the Studio space to record scripts for a puppet theatre program at their school and got to explore some of the Studio NPL tech. Technical Coordinator Stuart Wilson completed his first month and has been a great addition to the team. He partnered with Niq Tognoni to present on “AI in Libraries” at a YOUmedia conference call, went to Hermitage to help test equipment and setup for the Spring all-ages 3D printing series, coordinated a donation of four 3D printers from a local company, and has been helping the team catch up on some outstanding software and maintenance issues. The outreach team served 209 patrons across 16 hours of programming at schools, NAZA sites, and other community partners. A great story from our outreach teams comes from a visit to Wright Middle School: [summarized] “A recent immigrant student was having a hard time adjusting, and the site coordinator told us they do not speak to anyone in class or teachers and have been keeping to themselves. The Studio NPL team brought robots out to a visit, and one of the features is recording speech into the program and setting the robot to “speak” when prompted. When the student learned this, he excitedly used the feature to record his own voice and communicate with others via the robot; this seemed to help break the ice and he opened up to our Studio staff and his classmates throughout the activity – all with the help of the friendly Studio NPL robots!” A few donations came in this month, including money from Apple and TN Craft Fair and four excellent 3D printers that will help expand and upgrade Studio NPL’s printing services.

Main October Main Library Adult Services • A.J. Price and Joy Porter finished weeding and shifting the Grand Reading Room. They evaluated over 1,500 titles and removed outdated materials as needed. • Katie Osborne and Stephanie Ruhl completed the Supervisor Development Institute Leadership series. • The Adult Services team provided 22 programs this month with 166 attendees. Children’s • The Children’s team did a soft opening for the Sensory Room. We started promoting it by inviting partners to see it. Pat invited Mary Jackson and Omegbhai Uriri from Autism Tennessee. Mary Jackson suggested to a reporter from Channel 5 news to do a piece on the space and they did an interview with manager Pat Bashir and Mary Jackson.

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Our team had a great Halloween celebration with our spooky stations. Everyone used the costumes designed by Haylee Blystone for the Homeschool Friends movie and we got lots of compliments. The kids loved making monster bags and going from station to station to get treats. We had about 175 patrons participating.

Equal Access •

Nakita Burns joins us as the new Office Support Representative for Equal Access.

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Brenda Boaz-Pond and Daniel Motes worked with Wishing Chair staff to interpret Hansel and Gretel into American Sign Language for a group of 31 children from the Tennessee School for the Deaf. We open captioned the author conversation between Steve Inskeep and Heather Cox Richardson on October 12th at the Main Library. Outreach: Knoxville Center of the Deaf Expo and Tennessee Taste of Technology (for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Deafblind people).

Special Collections • • •

Kathleen Feduccia applied for and was awarded an applied grant from the Tennessee State Library and Archives to process and digitally present negatives from the Nashville Banner. Cynthia Gadley and Kathleen Feduccia attended the 2023 Society of Tennessee Archivists annual meeting in Springfield, TN. This month, Special Collections provided 11 programs with 296 attendees.

Teen Department • The Teen Department hosted a Spooky Story Contest. 58 Teens submitted stories written on index cards. Chelsey Melvin promoted this contest to 45 Teens at Hume-Fogg during their lunch. • Carrie Woods hosted a writing session at Meigs Middle School. • Andrew Palmer lead a writing session and button making class at MLK. Our first time connecting with MLK after many attempts. • Overall outreach this month – 5 Outreach programs, 167 attendees. • Programming – 25 programs this month, 195 attendees.

NPL and Under One Roof partnered this year for the Sukkot Collaborative Art Exhibit hosted by Gordon Jewish Community Center. Staff members from NPL came together to create an art piece that embodied this year’s theme, “Honor Humanity: K’vod Ha’Briot.” The participants who volunteered to create the piece were tasked to create and submit a collaborative artwork on a 30”x48” stretched canvas that reflected their interpretation of the theme. The participants wrote the following to describe their work: A Thousand (Book) Fibers “We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men.” This quote from Herman Melville guided us throughout our creative process, inspiring the incorporation of the fiber of books— their spines and pages— as the basis of our art piece. These titles, once destined to be recycled, are wide-ranging in both genre and age ranges to try to reflect the variety and diversity of our community. Libraries themselves are an embodiment of community, as a safe and welcoming space for both people and for ideas in the pages of books and other materials to come together and flourish. We wanted this piece to reflect that welcoming energy for all in the “book spine staircase” that leads through a nebulous background to the sukkot at the top. In other words, honoring humanity starts with honoring perspective, and literature is just one of the many pathways to creating a more harmonious community. “One Thousand (Book) Fibers” was included in the art exhibit from October 1st through 8th and stayed on display at the JCC through the end of October. Thank you to Gabi Crain (North), Lana Boleyjack (Main), Mariya West (Main), Kyle Barber (Main), Bassam Habib (Main), Amy Pierce (Main), and Georgina Susan (Volunteer) for their contribution to the collaboration, and Sharon Benus and the JCC for inviting NPL to participate in this year’s collaborative.

Main Library November Adult Services • Crystal hosted Killer Thrillers Book Club with a discussion of The Cold Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty with 9 people in attendance. • Kipp curated and screened a total of 45 movies in Public Technology this month with an estimated 700 patrons enjoying the films. • Lavelle welcomed Realistically Fed, a nonprofit that offers free breastfeeding classes with 8 in attendance. • Nina and Lavelle hosted Let’s Play Spades this month with 15 players over four sessions. • Nina hosted Movie and the Message where she screened This is Where I Leave You with 21 in attendance for the movie and conversation. • Andrew Palmer hosted Books and Brews offsite at Black Abbey Brewery where the group discussed Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice with 12 people in attendance. • Jeremy hosted Panel Discussion Comics Club. The group of three in attendance discussed and read Upgrade Soul by Ezra Claytan Daniels. • Kipp Hadli hosted his first series of programs this month, with four NaNoWriMo writing sessions. He had 10 writers at each session, making 40 total for the month. • Leigh Ann Wilson hosted Abstracts for Adults are series with 11 participants. • Leigh Ann Wilson hosted three Sound Bath programs with a total of 16 participants. • This month we started a puzzle exchange with a group of gently used puzzles that were donated to the library. • Katie Osborne and Paul Smethers had a combined 15 notary appointments • Paul Smethers recorded The Sequel to Divorce by Guy de Maupassant for his podcast, Just Listen.

Children’s Division • The biggest challenge in the Children’s Division is parking for families attending story times and marionette shows. Because of the barrier, Kelsee Gleeton began a campaign to keep families informed of parking alternatives. Through their Instagram page, Kelsee posts each week about discounted parking lots near the Main Library, to help families find ways to attend our programs. Equal Access • Equal Access staff open captioned the public lecture featuring author Kate DiCamillo, as part of the NPLF Literary Gala. • Daniel Motes and Brenda Boaz-Pond provided sign language classes to NPL staff from Main, Richland Park, and Edmondson Pike locations.

Daniel and Brenda continue their outreach work with Eakin Elementary by creating ASL translations of the book, The Phantom Tollbooth as well as follow-up activities after students saw Hansel and Gretel marionette show by Wishing Chair productions. Special Collections Successful programs this month, include: • Then and Now: History of Jewish Nashville – 205 attendees • Leadership Nashville – 60 attendees • Finn Partners – 40 attendees • Bill of Rights – 60 attendees • Power of Truths – 17 attendees Special Collections received a TSLA grant of $1,600 to process negatives from the Nashville Banner archives. Teen Division • Lauren Gilpin and Chelsy Melvin presented at the annual YALSA conference in St. Louis. The three presentations made included; Volunteer Days for Teens, Engaging Homeschool Teens, and Dungeons & Dragons Programming for Teens. 75 attendees were in attendance. • Carrie Woods continues to partner with Meigs Middle School. At their Family Literacy Night, Carrie presented to parents the importance of reading graphic novels and manga for teens. • This month, the Teen Division staff conducted 6 outreach sessions, with 97 in attendance.

Marketing and Communications MarCom Board Report For: October 2023 •

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Marketing support for Limitless Libraries: Back-to-School Biggest User contest o Marketing for contest launch o Marketing for contest winners o Advocacy: ▪ List to every Councilmember of winning schools w/in their districts ▪ Request to share on CMs’ socials profiles Last phase of Courtyard Concerts marketing Feature series for Digital Inclusion’s work with older Nashvillians Collaboration w/ NPLF for Public Lecture 2023 o Creation of special-edition La, La, La library card Marketing to educate community about NECAT Marketing and logistics / project management for Gaylord and Limitless Libraries winter reading partnership

Collection Development Plan for Limitless Libraries February 18, 2022

Objectives The Limitless Libraries collection development plan defines the materials selection, evaluation, and purchasing process used for enhancing and supporting the learning community needs of Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS). Limitless Libraries supplements MNPS funding and programming and ensures that each school library collection is aligned with curriculum standards and school needs. Limitless Libraries fosters understanding and collaboration between public and school libraries, maximizes efficiency, and benefits all students through resource sharing.

Scope of Collection The collection development plan for Limitless Libraries works in conjunction with the MNPS School Library Materials Selection Procedure. The MNPS School Library Materials Selection Procedure supersedes the collection development plan for Limitless Libraries in the event of conflict. The primary responsibility of Limitless Libraries is providing MNPS students with access to a broad choice of materials to meet their needs. “Collection” is defined as the materials that are selected for MNPS media centers. “Materials” includes, but is not limited to, print, audiovisual, and electronic formats. Limitless Libraries purchases materials in a variety of formats, languages, and levels of difficulty.

Responsibility of Selection The Limitless Libraries Manager and collection development Librarians oversee the budget, negotiate vendor agreements, and develop plans to improve and evaluate collections. Limitless Libraries collection development Librarians make selection decisions in conjunction with school librarians. School librarians have the ultimate approval of all items selected for their school libraries.

Selection Criteria Materials are selected based on the following: • •

Educational suitability of the resource for its intended use Intellectual content of the material: scope, arrangement and organization, relevance and recency of information, special features, and overall value to the collection

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Philosophy and goals of the school district: resources supported are consistent with the educational standards of the district and with standards of individual schools and specific courses; resources are useful in creating curriculum units Characteristics of the user: resources are age appropriate and supports all ability levels, learning styles, and the emotional and social development of students

Limitless Libraries collection development Librarians consider general selection criteria for all print, non-print, and electronic formats. They also weigh the following criteria: • • • • • • • • • • •

Impact on equipment, staff, storage, and space Technical quality of production or reproduction Durability of formats for library use Compliance with industry standards and specifications Availability of adequate startup and continuing funding Capability for networked distribution, download and printing Suitability to be circulated or housed in a sturdy, safe, and convenient manner Availability of technical support and staff training Accessibility of material Ease of use for students and staff Ownership of product

Material Formats Limitless Libraries Manager and collection development Librarians select materials in an array of formats: books, Playaways, DVDs, Wonderbooks, and eBooks. When selecting materials, Limitless Libraries collection development Librarians, in collaboration with school librarians, consider: • • • • • •

Intended audience Present and potential relevance to curriculum needs Formats that students and teachers prefer How material will be used Copyright laws and fair use guidelines Equipment and storage space availability

Decisions on whether to acquire a new format are made in conjunction with MNPS Library Services and Nashville Public Library’s (NPL) collection development department.

Challenged Material All formal material complaints are handled following the policy and procedures set forth under the MNPS School Library Materials Reconsideration Procedure. Limitless Libraries supplies order information, reviews, and other requested research as directed by the MNPS official handling the complaint.

Selection Sources Limitless Libraries Manager and collection development Librarians use several resources to identify materials. These resources include publishers’ catalogs, reviews published in reputable sources, school librarian or teacher recommendations, and in-hand evaluations. Publisher and vendor websites, the website of other library systems and literature specialists’ websites also aid selection. Materials are purchased prepublication or without in-hand evaluation if: • The materials received critical acclaim from a standard review source • The author is popular and/or renowned • The material covers a subject area of an expressed critical need, or the publisher has a good reputation • The material is a different edition or format of an original work previously accepted (i.e., audio book edition) • The material is part of a previously accepted series or a series that received acclaim from a standard review source.

AV Material AV materials, including Playaways, Wonderbooks, eBooks, and DVDs, are intended for student use and check-out. A small portion of the Limitless Libraries budget may be used for classroomuse AV material; however, the focus of the collection is on student use.

Collection Development Guidelines • • • • • • • •

Selection is based upon school curriculum, collection needs, and student preferences Limitless Libraries collection development Librarians provide material selection lists for school librarians to use at their discretion School librarians are encouraged to make material purchase requests Vendor selection is at NPL’s discretion DVDs purchased for high schools are not rated over PG-13 DVDs purchased for middle schools are not rated over PG No DVDs purchased for elementary schools Limitless Libraries funds do not purchase class sets; however, school librarians can request up to five copies of any one title be obtained

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A small portion of a school’s Limitless Libraries collection development budget may be used for titles to supplement a school’s professional development collection Limitless Libraries collection development Librarians order popular, high interest prepublication and summer titles without consulting school librarians School librarians have the right to return any items purchased for their locations Returned items are not credited to school budgets

Collection Development Procedure •

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Create electronic request lists using either Microsoft Word or Excel. Lists can be: o Specific titles and ISBNs o Specific topics needed in the library collection o Authorization that collection choices be made by the Limitless Libraries collection development Librarian o Any mixture of all the above methods Upload the document to the MNPS Library Services Schoology group’s Discussions section o Purchasing requests are ONLY accepted through Schoology Within the Discussions section of Schoology, o Elementary school librarians must upload requests to the Elementary School Purchase Requests folder o Middle school librarians must upload requests to the Middle School Purchase Requests folder o High school librarians must upload requests to the High School Purchase Requests folder The corresponding collection development Librarian for Limitless Libraries selects the vendor and places the orders If the corresponding collection development Librarian for Limitless Libraries has questions regarding the requests, they will contact the school librarian via email The corresponding collection development Librarian for Limitless Libraries sends a list to the school librarian for approval via email. If the approval from the school librarian is not received within 5 business days, the order will be placed automatically